It’s never too late to stop

Issue 16 
Smoking during pregnancy can cause miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth to mention but a few. When you light up a cigarette you aren’t the only one smoking, your baby is too

Babies need oxygen to grow big and strong. Every time you inhale smoke you put over 4000 chemicals including carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas, into your body. Carbon monoxide gets into your blood stream and cuts down the oxygen reaching your baby.

Smoking is harmful throughout your pregnancy. It can cause you to miscarry, bleed, and feel nauseas. It can reduce the weight of your baby, increase the risk of a premature birth or stillbirth and trebles the risk of cot death. It can also cause chest infections and asthma in your child, ailments that can last a lifetime and sometimes kill.

The good news is that by stopping smoking your baby benefits immediately. When your lungs become smoke free, the carbon monoxide and chemicals clear from your body and your oxygen levels return to normal.

Quitting is easier said than done but there are strategies to help you stop. The NHS Giving up Smoking organisation offers a wealth of information and advice:Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)

NRT helps people to give up smoking by reducing withdrawal symptoms. It is not a miracle cure but you are twice as likely to succeed in stopping when using it. It is important to weigh up the risks to you and the baby of continuing to smoke to the benefits of stopping using NRT.

Taking a short course is safer than staying a smoker, because unlike cigarettes NRT doesn’t contain tar, carbon monoxide or poisons.

NRT is available in many forms allowing you to choose which is best for you.Patches

Easy to use and discreet, patches work by releasing a steady dose of nicotine into the blood stream. Patches should be applied to a hairless part of the body such as your upper arm but don’t use in the same place two days running. You shouldn’t smoke while wearing your patch or use any other form of NRT unless advised by your GP.

Cost: £15 for a weeks supply, although you can now ask your GP to make it available to you on prescription.Gum

Learning how to chew the gum properly is important. The idea is to chew gently until you get the flavour and then "park" the gum in your cheek so that nicotine is absorbed through the lining of the mouth.Nasal spray

This is the strongest form of NRT and is a small bottle of nicotine solution, which is sprayed directly into the nose.Microtab

It is small white tablet, which you put underneath your tongue and leave. It works by being absorbed into the lining of the mouth.Lozenge

It is like a sweet that you suck slowly. It gives you nicotine in a similar way to the microtab.Inhalator

It is a plastic device shaped like a cigarette with a nicotine cartridge fitted into it. Sucking on the mouthpiece releases nicotine vapour, which gets absorbed through your mouth and throat.

There are also natural alternatives to giving up . . .Acupuncture

The practice of acupuncture involves inserting fine needles at selected points on the skin into acupoints. Inserting needles at these points is said to help regulate the function of the related organ by assisting the flow of energy.

Acupuncture is safe if practised by a qualified practitioner. Each individual will have a different experience of acupuncture but it is fairly painless and rouses a feeling of relaxation.

Acupuncture is excellent for giving up smoking and is totally natural so is suitable for pregnant women. John Brazier, registered acupuncturist said: "Any antismoking product will work if the person has really decided to give up. We generally get 75-80 per cent of people to stop smoking after acupuncture."

For more information and for your local practitioner visit: www.acupuncture.org.uk

John Brazier is based in St.Annes, Lancashire and can be contacted on: 01253 728035Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy works by accessing your subconscious mind. Any suggestions that are made when in the relaxed subconscious state are then acted upon. It is great for pregnant women as it is totally natural.

Coral Leybourne qualified Hypnotherapist said: "For smoking, hypnosis is a way of removing the desire. I have a 90 per cent success rate with people who come to me to give up."

It is important to establish that a practitioner is fully trained, insured and had experience before embarking on a programme of treatment.

For more information and for your local practitioner visit:

www.general-hypnotherapy-register.com

Coral Leybourne is based in Stockport, Greater Manchester and can be contacted on: 0161 4323022