Don't smoke a single cigarette or drink a single sip during pregnancy, and don't let anyone at home smoke indoors
- High value
- Evidence A
- Buys life
- For: Pregnant or trying
- Free
- Takes minutes
- Long-term effort
In plain words
Smoking in pregnancy raises the chance of premature birth, a baby that is too small, and cleft lip and palate. It doubles the risk of abnormal bleeding during pregnancy and delivery. It also raises the risk of sudden infant death. Family members smoking indoors counts just the same. It is never too late to quit.
- Cost
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Free, and you save the money you would have spent on cigarettes and alcohol. The hard part is getting the people you live with to quit too.
- What you get
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says smoking during pregnancy can make a baby “too small even when born at full term” and “can cause premature birth.” It “doubles the risk of abnormal bleeding during pregnancy and delivery.” It raises the risk of birth defects such as cleft lip and cleft palate. It also “harms the baby's developing lungs and brain, and the harm can last into childhood.” Babies born to mothers who smoked in pregnancy, and babies exposed to smoke after birth, have a higher risk of sudden infant death syndrome. The official advice is “ideally quit before pregnancy, but if you are already pregnant, quitting still helps” and “it is never too late to quit.”
- Notes
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When others smoke indoors, the secondhand smoke a pregnant woman breathes counts for the baby just the same. So family members who live with you should not smoke indoors either. The same goes for alcohol: no amount of drinking is known to be safe, and the simplest course in pregnancy is not to drink at all. For the account of smoking and drinking for adults themselves, see §2.
- Evidence grade
- A : Specific numbers from meta-analyses, large cohorts or randomized trials; for law and policy, the statute or official text.
- Sources
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- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Smoking During Pregnancy. https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/diseases/pregnancy.html
Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 27, tip 4. This section is about health and medicines. It is general information, not a substitute for a doctor’s diagnosis or prescription. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer