By ALESHA CAPONE
WOMEN in the West are a lot less likely to smoke while pregnant when compared to their peers across the state, according to new figures from the Department of Health.
A report released last week showed how many females in Victorian hospitals smoked during pregnancy before 20 weeks gestation.
In 2011, less than 15 per cent of women who attended Sunshine Hospital reported smoking during this period.
At the Mercy Werribee Public Hospital, just 10 per cent of women continued using cigarettes at 20 months pregnant.
The data from the two hospitals puts the number of smoking mothers from the West in the bottom 25 per cent for Victoria.
In comparison, more than 35 per cent of women at the Maryborough District Health Service and 25 per cent at Frankston Hospital smoked until the 20 weeks gestation cut-off.
After this period, less than five per cent of pregnant women at the Sunshine and Werribee hospitals continued smoking.
In Maryborough, more than 20 per cent of future mothers continued smoking after 20 weeks.
According to Quit Victoria, chemicals from smoking such as nicotine and carbon monoxide can cause problems during pregnancy.
Carbon monoxide reduces the ability of the foetus to carry oxygen, while nicotine raises foetal blood pressure and affects the baby’s ability to practise breathing.
Literature from Quit Victoria also said mothers who smoked were one third more likely to have a baby that was born prematurely, three times more likely to have an infant die from SIDS and an increased risk of stillbirth and miscarriage.
