Smoking is harmful to your unborn baby and newborn.
How does a pleasant, relaxing Sunday afternoon lunch turn into a frustrating, anxiety-provoking event in seconds?
Okay, since most of you are Richmond moms with young children, you’re probably laughing right now. You know it can happen in the blink of an eye with a toddler, older sibling, or even a teenager.
But my children are grown and I didn’t have any of my grandchildren with me.
My husband and I went out for lunch at one of our favorite places in Short Pump. We found a nice quiet seat by the window so we could enjoy the afternoon sun. It was cool and inviting outside and being able to enjoy lunch prepared by someone else was a nice treat since we typically eat at home most of the time.
As we were waiting to be served, I glanced out the window as I heard children giggling. Their happy faces and giggles were infectious and I smiled back. And that’s when it happened.
I looked behind them and there she stood. She was a young woman in her mid to late-20’s dressed very meticulously. Her hair was neatly groomed and she had excellent taste in accessories for sure — who wouldn’t love the designer purse she was carrying and the beautiful shoes she was wearing!
As I watched her walking across the parking lot and she turned my way, I suddenly realized that she was pregnant and she was so cute.
You know — one of those pregnant women who looks stylish even in maternity clothes. A neat skirt just above the knee and a cute shirt that gave a silhouetted outline of her tummy and a vision of the baby to come. The only sign of pregnancy was her bulging belly with her hand resting on her stomach like pregnant women naturally do. (There was none of that extra weight on the thighs, hips, and butt that I carried both times I was pregnant.)
When I looked a little closer and saw her stylish nails with the latest fall color of pewter glistening in the sunlight as she neared her vehicle — it hit me.
She was smoking!
Yes, smoking.
In seconds, my pleasant afternoon turned upside down. I was quickly seething with anger and frustration that in today’s world of information, any woman who was pregnant would even think about smoking! How could she do that to her unborn child and risk pregnancy complications or worse. What was she thinking – or was she thinking at all?
How does a woman who was obviously taking such immaculate care of herself and who looked so healthy and glowing be so irresponsible? She had to be a smart woman from all outward indications, but now I wasn’t sure.
I turned to get up out of my seat when my husband asked where I was going. “I’m going to tell that woman that smoking while she is pregnant can cause serious harm to her baby.”
Yes, you guessed it. He stared at me unbelievably and then, “You’re doing whatttttt?” was his response.
After 20+ years in healthcare with the majority of that time in prenatal education and preterm birth prevention, I couldn’t let this moment pass. But before I could make another move, the young woman and her partner had gotten in their car and were backing out of the parking lot. My moment had passed.
For the next 10 minutes I sat explaining to my husband about the hazards of smoking while pregnant. I cited statistics about the risk of preterm birth, underweight babies, and long-term complications. I explained how women need to be more aware of the hazards of their actions on their unborn child. I explained to him that it was like holding a tiny infant and breathing cigarette smoke into her tiny lungs.
And then, I told him we should track her down and I would snatch the cigarette right out of her hand when she reached out the window to flick her ashes.
By then, I think he had heard enough so he eventually steered the conversation to another topic. But I kept thinking about that tiny unborn baby struggling to breathe.
Risks of Smoking While Pregnant
That moment sticks with me still as I write this. I missed the opportunity to make a difference for that baby, but I hope that this article will reach pregnant women everywhere and help them understand the importance of not smoking while they are pregnant.
It’s harmful to you and your baby. Unborn babies are exposed to toxic chemicals including nicotine, carbon monoxide and tar. It decreases the available oxygen to the baby’s tiny, unformed lungs. It can lead to an ectopic pregnancy, bleeding, placental abruption, and even stillbirth.
Babies who are born to women who smoke are more likely to be low-birthweight, have cleft lip or palate, be born prematurely, or have other birth defects.
And even when women smoke after their babies are born, they should never smoke near or around a baby, and that means no smoking in the house. Babies who are around secondhand smoke are more likely to die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), are at greater risk for asthma, pneumonia, and ear infections, and may suffer other respiratory conditions. They can even experience slow lung growth for life-long problems.
Where to Get Help
If you or someone you know is pregnant and is still smoking, please seek help or ask her to get help to stop smoking immediately. She can talk to her obstetrician or contact the March of Dimes. Many health insurers offer healthy baby prenatal education programs and some even cover smoking cessation programs. Do whatever possible to give an unborn and newborn baby the best possible chance to survive — and to live a healthier life.
Tonight, my prayer is that the young woman I observed today will see that she is making a poor choice that could cause serious complications for her baby and she will stop smoking now. And I’m taking this opportunity to make sure as many people as possible know about the dangers of smoking during pregnancy too.
Please, help me spread the word.
