Effects Of Smoking On Pregnancy

Question:
What effects are there for smoking on pregnancy?

Answer:
There is new evidence that besides causing low birth weight, premature labor and other difficulties, smoking may in fact cause additional effects that impair the fetus' brain development and cause levels of retardation. Also, smoking is a HUGE risk for SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) once the baby is born. I think that all of the evidence points very strongly to the fact that not only is smoking deadly for all smokers, it is especially detrimental to pregnant women and their fetuses. It is also highly addictive, which is why it's so hard to stop, even with all the evidence that it is really bad news. The hard truth is, there is no justification for smoking during pregnancy if you really care about your baby. I know it's really, really hard to stop, but think of it as like some sort of really difficult medical procedure - you HAVE to do it.