Pregnancy is a great opportunity for change
Stopping smoking is the best thing you can do for your baby
Here you will find information to help you if you are thinking about stopping smoking or vaping, or if you want to help or encourage someone you know to stop smoking.
We are not here to tell you all the bad things about smoking as you already know what they are.
We are here to help, advise, encourage, motivate and support you at every step of your journey. We will tailor a unique programme for you and support you in that programme. And if you don’t succeed at first, we will not judge or criticise. We will help you to review what you have achieved and will continue to work with you until you succeed. There is also support available to help you and your family and friends too.
Many people can quit on their own but evidence shows that quitting with our help you are three times more likely to successfully quit and stay smoke-free. Many studies have shown it is easier to stop smoking and to stay smoke-free if you do it with our help.
With your determination and commitment, and our encouragement and support we are confident that you too can be smoke free.
£220 Financial Incentives
Most smokers want to quit. They know it’s bad for their health and their baby. They know it is costing them greatly BUT cigarettes were designed to make quitting difficult. If there was something we could do to make it easier to stop smoking – Shouldn’t we?
Financial incentives in pregnancy, is one the most effective ways of helping woman to quit and remain quit post-partum too. Woman receiving incentives are more than twice as likely to quit compared to those not receiving incentives.
Are you pregnant and want to stop smoking?
Our service has introduced financial incentives in the form of e-vouchers that can be used at various supermarkets and worth up to £220.
Earn your first £40 just by attending your telephone stop smoking appointment and give your quit a go for 7 days.
Please see the incentives leaflet for more information.
What happens when a pregnant women smokes
When you smoke, your baby does too. Every cigarette contains 4,000 chemicals, which go into your lungs when you smoke. Once in your lungs, the nicotine, poisons and carbon monoxide cross the placenta to your baby. This affects baby and restricts the amount of oxygen the baby gets.
How Smoking harms your baby
Every time a pregnant mum smokes it affects her baby’s growth and development and causes her baby’s heart to beat harder.
Continuing to smoke during pregnancy increases the risk of:
• Miscarriage
• Stillbirth
• Low birthweight
• Premature birth
• Baby having a cleft lip/palate
Smoking when pregnant can also affect your child as they grow up. Babies and children whose mothers smoke during pregnancy are also at great risk of:
• Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)
• Colic
• Infections in the airways
• Ear infections
• Asthma
• Conditions such as ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder).
• Psychological problems in childhood: disruptive behaviour and poor educational performance
Stopping smoking will help you and your baby immediately. When you stop smoking, it only takes 24 hours for the poisonous gas carbon monoxide to clear from your bloodstream. Your baby will quickly start getting more oxygen through the placenta and you will instantly start to reduce the risk of complications in your pregnancy and during baby’s birth.
Carbon Monoxide and your baby
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colourless, odourless and tasteless poisonous gas. You can’t see it or smell it, but it is in cigarette smoke. CO is also in faulty gas boilers, car exhaust fumes, burning coal, wood, oil.
If you are exposed to carbon monoxide: the CO replaces some of the oxygen going into your lungs and gets into your bloodstream. This prevents the red blood cells from carrying oxygen around your body and to your baby. It is dangerous because it deprives the baby of oxygen, slows the baby’s growth and development, and increases the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
CO Breath test: NHSGGC offer CO testing to all pregnant women at their first booking appointment and subsequent appointments to show how much of this gas you and your baby have been exposed to.
Second hand smoke
Second hand smoke can affect you and your baby before and after their birth. More than 80% of second hand smoke is invisible and doesn’t smell.
Exposure to second hand smoke can increase the risk of:
• Premature birth
• Low birth weight
• Sudden Unexplained Death in Infancy (SUDI)
Babies whose parents smoke are also more likely to be admitted to hospital during the first year of life, as they are more likely to develop infections that can affect their breathing, such as bronchitis and pneumonia.
If you smoke, you will find it harder to quit if someone living with you also smokes.
It doesn’t matter how careful others think they are about keeping smoke away from you. If someone smokes in your home, you and your baby still breath in the harmful poisons. Opening windows and doors or smoking in another room will not make it completely safe.
For more information on second hand smoke and making your home smoke-free, please phone 07796 937 679 or email: ggc.quityourway.pregnancy@nhs.scot
E-cigarettes / Vaping
Current research about e-cigarette use in pregnancy shows that they are significantly less harmful to health than cigarettes. If using an e-cigarette (vaping) helps you stay smoke free, this is far safer for you and your baby than continuing to smoke.
E-cigarettes are regulated in the UK but they are not currently licensed as a stop smoking aid. If you choose to use an e-cigarette to help you to quit smoking tobacco it is important to ensure you buy one from a reputable retailer to minimise the risk of harm.
You can discuss the risk and benefits of e-cigarettes with Quit Your Way pregnancy services. They can also discuss the option of using nicotine replacement therapy, which is licensed and can be prescribed to support you with your quit attempt.
Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)
Many NRT products are licensed to use in pregnancy. NRT contains only nicotine and none of the damaging chemicals found in cigarettes, so it is a better option than continuing to smoke. It helps you by giving you the nicotine you would have had from a cigarette. The Quit Your Way Pregnancy Practitioner can arrange for you to have NRT during your pregnancy. This can be in the form of patches, gum, lozenges, mouth spray or an inhalator.
Inpatients: You can also access NRT during your stay in hospital, please ask your midwife if you are interested in this.
Staying Stopped after baby’s birth
Once your baby is here you may feel as though your reasons for giving up smoking is over – but it isn’t! It’s still very important that you stay stopped after pregnancy. Think of what you have achieved by stopping smoking during your pregnancy – You should feel so proud! Remaining smoke-free will result in lots of health benefits for you and your baby. Think of the money you can save to spend on your baby, or on a treat for yourself.
Research shows that children of smoking parents are more likely to try smoking and become regular smokers. If you don’t want your children to smoke it’s best to set a smoke-free example.
If you would like to talk to a stop smoking practitioner please phone: 07796 937 679 or email: ggc.quityourway.pregnancy@nhs.scot
Next Steps….
We know that stopping smoking is not an easy thing to do on your own but we are here to help. Quit Your Way services help thousands of people in Scotland stop smoking every year. Smoking is an addiction that for most smokers is hard to quit. We are confident that with our help you can quit, and with encouragement and support make your life and the lives of those around you smoke-free.
Next steps…
You’ve already made the first step by looking through this website. The next step is to contact us and have a chat with one of our advisers!
Phone: 07796 937 679
Email: ggc.quityourway.pregnancy@nhs.scot