The use of tobacco during pregnancy is a major and important health problem as far as maternity and infant health is concerned. Women have many reasons to quit smoking but one of the most important reasons for quitting smoking is when they are pregnant. This will help them in reducing the chances of getting lung issues, cancer, and even diseases related to the heart. Furthermore, it can help them finish their maternity period feeling more energetic and healthier. This essay is going to analyze the effects of smoking on pregnant mothers and their babies and also interventions for this problem across the five strategies of health-related interventions.
Smoking results in babies being born too early or too late and others being born with a birth weight lower than normal. According to the research done by American Pregnancy Associates, it is found that approximately fifteen percent of pregnant women smoke endangering their lives and those of their babies (Shakarwal, 2020). This relates to the death of about one thousand babies every year in the United States. These deaths arise because when a pregnant woman smokes, the baby is exposed to some dangerous poisons such as nicotine, carbon monoxide arsenic, and lead. These substances are absorbed by the placenta and taken to the baby. In addition to this, smoking results in babies being born too early or too late and some also being born with a birth weight lower than normal.
It is known that many women know the dangers of smoking when pregnant and they always try to quit smoking to protect the lives of themselves and the child. Several measures should be put in place to help the women involved quit smoking during pregnancies. Several things can be done to reduce this problem. One of the things that pregnant women should practice is health promotion. It involves systematically changing one’s daily habits for example for those who are used to smoking after meals they can make it that after every meal instead of smoking, they can rather keep themselves busy. For instance, they can read one of their favorite novels or perhaps watch their favorite series movie and this can make them forget about smoking. The government can also go a long way in exercising this measure by putting heavy taxation on tobacco products and even consider smoking in public as a chargeable offense.
For the women already affected, there is a need to save them and their children from the dangers of smoking. This can be done by doing the early medical screening, cancer checkups. This may call for the government to reduce the costs of medical screening and checkups in public hospitals to encourage everyone to go for the checking. The creation of many rehabilitation facilities is also a very important measure that will ensure that those affected get proper professional attention that will help them overcome the urge to smoking. This measure can be useful especially where family support and therapy are included which will help the patient when their body is in withdrawal and detox phase thereby keeping their body and health on track.
In conclusion, quitting smoking when pregnant is one of the wisest decisions a woman could ever make because it will result in the birth of healthy children with healthy mothers. Almost half of the pregnant women always choose to quit smoking when pregnant but after delivering they continue with smoking. This practice should be avoided because the smoke produced is still harmful to the child after pregnancy in the same way it is during the actual pregnancy. Therefore, for the complete health of both the mother and the child, it is of great importance to abstain from smoking during pregnancy.
Reference
Shakarwal, S. (2020). Comparative study of coagulation profile in normal pregnant women, pregnant women at high risk, normal non-pregnant healthy women, and pregnancy outcome.Journal of Advanced Research In Medicine, 07(03), 1-6.