Smoking in pregnancy: "We don’t judge. We’re here to help you quit."
Angela is a consultant midwife. She works at Wirral University Teaching Hospital and, as part of her role, she leads the maternity team on the Smoking in Pregnancy Pathway – a tranche of support options and links to ABL, Wirral’s Stop Smoking Service. Funded by Wirral Council Public Health, ABL provides personalised support to anyone looking to quit smoking, including those who find themselves struggling to quit smoking while pregnant.
Angela said:
Smoking is the single biggest modifiable risk factor during pregnancy. This means, it’s the biggest risk to yours and your baby’s health that, unlike some other risk factors, is in your power to change.
If you smoke while pregnant it carries lots of risks for yourself and your baby including miscarriage and preterm birth. Your baby can also struggle to grow and have difficulty breathing at birth, with increased risk of asthma in childhood. There’s also a risk of high blood pressure and respiratory problems for yourself, along with risks of bleeding and problems with your placenta.
The good news is, that quitting smoking dramatically reduces these risks. And Angela and her team are here to support any pregnant women and birthing people in their quitting journey.
Angela said:
We’ve had people who have had multiple quit attempts in pregnancy, people who’ve tried to quit in the past and been unsuccessful. Whatever their story, we always say to never give up. Trying again can work. It’s about motivating mums to have another go.
And it’s important to remember that it’s never too late to quit. We’ve had people who’ve quit at the start of their pregnancy and right at the end – and it was the last quit attempt that was the successful one. There’s more positive impact on pregnancy the earlier you quit, but we would celebrate someone who quits at 30 weeks just the same as someone who quits at 16 weeks.
At WUTH, smoking rates at time of delivery have been dropping over the last five years. Angela is keen to remind people that there’s no amount of smoking that is safe during pregnancy, and even second hand smoke can carry serious risks.
Angela said:
Living with somebody who smokes can give a pregnant person a high carbon monoxide (CO) level and give you the same risks as smoking.
I spoke with someone recently who had a high carbon monoxide (CO) reading, but was a non-smoker. They had been around cigarette smoke earlier that day on the way to the appointment, which may have affected the result. The person smoking hadn’t realised the impact that second-hand smoke could have on someone nearby — or on an unborn baby sharing the same space. When I explained that, they were really taken aback. I’ll be interested to see if that realisation helps them to quit, as it clearly made a big impression.
Angela wants to assure pregnant people who smoke that there’s nothing to be ashamed of and support is available to help them stop smoking during Stoptober, and indeed any day of the year.
Angela said:
The best thing you can do for you and your baby is to quit smoking.
Stoptober is a great time to talk about smoking and help people quit, but we offer this support 365 days a year. If you’re pregnant, speak to your midwife and they can refer you to get help to quit.
Anyone can access free support from ABL, Wirral’s stop smoking service. ABL provides personalised support to stop smoking through a 12-week quit programme run by expert advisors and free nicotine replacement therapy.
Visit www.smokefreewirral.co.uk or call 0151 541 5656 today.
