Every year over one thousand babies die because expectant mothers smoke during their pregnancy, resulting in a fatality. The effects of smoking during pregnancy on newborns can be harmful to babies when they are born, and even be deadly. Some expectant mothers smoke because they are addicted to nicotine or due to stress, but no matter the reason an unborn baby is still being potentially harmed. Some of the most known birth defects in newborns, from mothers smoking, are premature birth, stillbirth, and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Smoking during pregnancy causes these harmful effects on newborns because when a mother smokes, so does her unborn baby. Everything a pregnant woman ingests into her body goes straight to her baby, including cigarettes, which cause a wide range of birth defects in newborn babies (American Pregnancy.)
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“Smoking during pregnancy is estimated to account for 20 to 30 percent of low-birth weight babies, up to 14 percent of preterm deliveries…” (American Lung Association.) The nicotine that a pregnant woman ingests from cigarettes goes directly to her baby through blood flow, and can increase the chance of premature birth. When a baby is delivered prematurely, it will affect how long the newborn has to stay in the hospital because the baby will more than likely be sick. Majority of premature newborns are below average weight and are not fully developed internally. A newborn’s lungs and brain is not fully developed until at least thirty-six weeks (acog.org), so this can cause breathing problems at birth, and even breathing problems extended into his or her childhood (cdc.gov.) Premature birth is a serious effect from smoking during pregnancy, but there can be worse
“Smoking during pregnancy is estimated to account for 20 to 30 percent of low-birth weight babies, up to 14 percent of preterm deliveries…” (American Lung Association.) The nicotine that a pregnant woman ingests from cigarettes goes directly to her baby through blood flow, and can increase the chance of premature birth. When a baby is delivered prematurely, it will affect how long the newborn has to stay in the hospital because the baby will more than likely be sick. Majority of premature newborns are below average weight and are not fully developed internally. A newborn’s lungs and brain is not fully developed until at least thirty-six weeks (acog.org), so this can cause breathing problems at birth, and even breathing problems extended into his or her childhood (cdc.gov.) Premature birth is a serious effect from smoking during pregnancy, but there can be worse