Vaping While Pregnant – Report Gives Advice For Midwives

Report Recommends Vaping Instead Of Smoking For Pregnant Women

Smoking whilst pregnant is dangerous to the woman and more so to the baby she’s carrying.

I think we all agree this is a matter of fact.

But what about vaping? Can a pregnant woman use e cigarettes without worrying about damaging her unborn baby?

Of course, quitting altogether is the best way to go but in the real world, this isn’t so easy for many smokers, pregnant or not. As has been proved time and time again.

I can remember waiting for my grandson to be born outside the hospital and reeling in horror as three women staggered out, each ready to burst at any second with one lady hooked up to a drip on a trolley.

All three lit up fags without a care in the world. I have to admit being more than a little shocked, to say the least.

E Cigs As An Alternative To Smoking During Pregnancy

As the use of e-cigs continues to grow in popularity a leaflet offered to Midwives and produced by the Smoking in Pregnancy Challenge Group – suggests women who find it difficult, if not impossible, to quit smoking should try vaping as an alternative.

They report that 11% of mothers smoked cigarettes at the time of delivery in 2015 with up to 26% of pregnant women admitting to smoking in certain areas of the country.

They suggest:

“While licensed NRT (nicotine replacement products) products are the recommended option, if a pregnant woman chooses to use an electronic cigarette and if that helps her to stay smoke-free, she should not be discouraged from doing so”

I have to say this is a brilliant leaflet and one that should be made available to the wider public and indeed anyone concerned about smoking whilst pregnant.

It points out that whilst e-cigarettes and vaping cannot be classed as a completely safer alternative to smoking, evidence strongly suggests it is indeed 95% safer and vaping does not produce carbon monoxide or indeed other chemicals that tobacco provides.

As the report from Public Health England stated in 2015.

Risks From Nicotine

Nicotine in cigarettes and e cigarettes have been the cause for much debate in terms of how harmful it actually is. The Smoking in Pregnancy Challenge Group approach this in a non-alarmist fashion that is so often read about in sensationalist reports:

“The great majority of the harm from smoking comes from inhaling tobacco smoke which contains around 4000 chemicals, a significant number of which are toxic.

While it is nicotine that makes tobacco so addictive, it is relatively harmless. Nicotine replacement therapy is widely used to help people stop smoking and is a safe form of treatment, including during pregnancy.”

The Myth of Passive Vaping

They add that the effects on others by so-called ‘passive vaping’ carries a fraction of the risk.

“Although not completely risk free, electronic cigarettes carry a fraction of the risk of smoking for users, with no known risks to bystanders”

The leaflet urges pregnant women to seek professional support and advice from their GPs and smoke free clinics as well as their local vape shop which I think is a remarkable vote of confidence in vaping as a way of giving up the dreaded fags!

The Smoking in Pregnancy Challenge Group have taken a sensible approach, using the facts they have to hand, in recommending vaping as a way to help pregnant smokers quit cigarettes. The report offers pregnant women that smoke solid information on which to make an informed decision.

“However, if they (pregnant women) choose to use an electronic cigarette and this helps them to quit and stay smoke-free, it is safer for both them and their unborn baby than continuing to smoke”

I’m sure we can all agree quitting smoking and/or vaping altogether would undoubtedly be the safest way to go for pregnant women. So this report shouldn’t be used an excuse not stop any of the above while pregnant.

You can download the full leaflet HERE – pass it on.