Risky choice

London, Oct. 4: Pregnant teenagers are deliberately smoking in the hope of giving birth to smaller babies, making labour less painful, a British minister claimed yesterday.

Caroline Flint, the public health minister, said that official warnings about the links between smoking and underweight babies had been understood by prospective teenage mothers.

Smoking whilst pregnant does reduce a baby’s weight but labour is made no less painful.

But instead of perceiving smoking as a health risk, many continued to smoke because they thought a smaller baby would reduce labour pains.

Flint said she had heard about the issue anecdotally from health professionals and young women she had met. She added: “It is important that we understand what stops young women making healthy choices so that we can provide the right answers to their concerns. In this case childbirth is no less painful if your baby is low weight. So smoking is not the answer; pain relief is.”

Studies have shown that smoking during pregnancy accounts for between 20 and 30 per cent of low birth weight babies. Babies of smoking mothers are on average 200 grams lighter than those of non-smoking mothers.

Undernourished babies are less able to control their temperature and deal with jaundice and are at a greater risk of cot death.

They are also likely to suffer ailments such as chest and ear infections and delays in physical and intellectual development.

Smoking hinders the growth of an unborn child by reducing the amount of oxygen and nutrients it receives via the placenta and umbilical cord.

Research suggests that around 17 per cent of smokers refuse to give up during pregnancy. Of those, the vast majority is young, single and poorly educated.