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Written By: Editorial Team | Published : October 23, 2013 3:39 PM IST
Having a baby is one of the most important moments in any woman's life. However, the gift of creating life within oneself comes with a set of responsibilities. Smoking during pregnancy can harm your baby in more ways than one. And, according to a new research led by Abigail Halperin, mothers who smoke during pregnancy raise the chances of their infants being diagnosed with respiratory and other infections by more than 50%.
The study published in the journal Paediatric Infectious Diseases, used records of 50,000 infants born in Washington between 1987 and 2004. 'We've known for a long time that babies born to mothers who smoke during pregnancy are at high risk for serious medical problems relating to low birth weight, premature delivery and poor lung development. While respiratory infections have been recognized as a common cause of these sometimes life-threatening illnesses, this study shows that babies exposed to smoke in utero also have increased risk for hospitalization and death from a much broader range of infections, both respiratory and non-respiratory, than we knew before.', Abigail Halperin, the lead researcher of the study said. (Read: Five ways smoking during pregnancy can harm your baby)
The study also showed that if expectant mothers decided to kick the butt or reduce their smoking during pregnancy, the chances of their infant being infected with such diseases reduces.
Besides saving their child from respiratory and other infections, we will give you five reasons expectant mothers need to kick the butt:
Smoking makes your baby's brain smaller
According to a study, smoking during pregnancy can lead to babies with smaller brains which make them more prone to stress and anxiety. The reason behind it, scientists suspect, is that smoking affects the development of foetus by destroying neurons and reducing oxygen supply to the womb.
Smoking is likely to give your baby meningitis
According to British researchers, smoking during pregnancy trebles the chances of the baby developing meningitis. Meningitis is caused by an infection of the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord.
Smoking leads to low weight babies
According to the findings of a research conducted in Spain, it was found that women who smoked during pregnancy gave birth to lighter babies. A research was conducted on 1,216 newly born babies and it was seen that such babies were lighter by 216 grams on an average. For those who don't know, babies born with low birth weight are likely to suffer from malnutrition, developmental disorders, learning disabilities, heart-related issues and a host of other conditions.
Your kid is likelier to suffer from heart disease
According to a study, children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are more susceptible to heart disease because they have lower levels of HDL, than children of non-smokers. By the age of eight, children born to mothers who smoked had HDL levels of about 1.3 millimoles per litre as against a more normal level of 1.5 millimoles per litre among children of non-smoking mothers.
You're likelier to suffer problems during pregnancy
Smoking during pregnancy does not create problems for the baby only after it's born. Even during the pregnancy period and delivery, several problems can arise. When you smoke during pregnancy, your unborn baby gets affected by the chemicals from the cigarette. There is an increased risk for premature rupture of the amniotic sac, placenta previa (a condition where the placenta is placed in an unusual position in the uterus), miscarriage, and neonatal death. (Read: The most comprehensive guide to first trimester dos and don'ts you'll ever need!)
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