Smoking in pregnancy has well known detrimental effects for the growth and development of the baby and health of the mother.

Pregnant women who smoke tend to have more complications during pregnancy and labour, including:

• bleeding during pregnancy
• placental abruption
• complications during labour
• increased risk of miscarriage
• premature birth
• stillbirth
• low birthweight
• sudden unexpected death in infancy

Encouraging pregnant women to stop smoking during pregnancy may also help them:

• kick the habit for good
• develop health benefits for the mother
• reduce exposure to second-hand smoke by the infant

One of the four key ambitions of the Tobacco Control Plan (2017) is to reduce smoking in pregnancy (as recorded at time of delivery) to 6% or less.

Resources to help midwifery teams support smokefree pregnancies

The Supporting a Smokefree Pregnancy and Smokefree Families programme is the result of the collaboration between Public Health England, the NHS and the National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training.

The programme offers e-learning resources that highlight the importance of supporting women to have a smokefree pregnancy and focus on the delivery of Very Brief Advice (VBA) and carbon monoxide monitoring. You need to register to access.