MORE than a quarter of new mums who gave birth at Grimsby's hospital have admitted to smoking whilst pregnant.
Lighting up can cause premature birth, low birth weight, respiratory problems, behavioural issues, poor intellectual development and even miscarriage.
But 26.1 per cent of the women who delivered at the Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital between April last year and March this year, smoked during their pregnancy – almost double the national average of 13.6 per cent.
The problem is worse in the least affluent wards of North East Lincolnshire – in some of them, one in three mums-to-be declared they were habitual smokers.
Isobel Duckworth, Locum Consultant in Public Health at North East Lincolnshire Care Trust Plus, said: "North East Lincolnshire has one of the highest levels of smoking in pregnancy in England with around a quarter of women in the area smoking throughout their pregnancy.
"This is putting many unborn babies at a serious disadvantage, giving rise to not only an increased risk of premature birth, but also of miscarriage or low birth weight. It really is of great concern to us that so many women still choose to continue to smoke throughout their pregnancy in spite of the very real risks that this poses to both themselves and their unborn child.
"Everyone wants their baby to be healthy and to get the best possible start in life.
"For this to happen, it's absolutely vital that both mums and their partners quit smoking during the pregnancy.
"It's also really important for them to keep their home smoke-free once the baby has been born, to protect the child from the dangerous effects of second hand smoke."
Breathing smoke both before and after birth can lead to respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis.
Despite the high numbers – 734 mums out of 2,812 – there has been 2.1 per cent improvement on the 2007/08 figure of 28.2 per cent.
One new mum from Grimsby, who did not wish to be named, said: "I did know that I shouldn't have been smoking while I was pregnant, and I did cut down but it's very hard to stop altogether when you're a smoker.
"I smoked about 20 a day before I fell pregnant and cut down to about three or four a day.
"They kept pushing me to stop and I tried but couldn't stop altogether.
"Now I've had my baby I go outside to smoke so as not to smoke indoors, as I know I shouldn't smoke in front of him."
Trevor Parkin, Tobacco Alliance Co-ordinator for North East Lincolnshire, added: "The problem is much greater in our least affluent wards where as many as one in three pregnant women smoke during their pregnancy compared to only around one in a hundred in Waltham and Haverstoe.
"The number of women smoking in pregnancy is gradually reducing but not nearly as fast as we would like."
The Care Trust Plus would not reveal which of the least affluent wards were affected.
The worst affected place in the UK is Blackpool, where 29.7 per cent of mums-to-be don't give up their habit, and the least affected is Westminster, where 2.9 per cent smoke.
Get help
If you're pregnant and want to stop smoking, ask your maternity care provider or log on to the services website: www.freedomfromsmoke.co.uk. Alternatively, you can contact the service direct on 0845 60321 66.
