Cigarettes

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Date: April 2026, Version 2.0

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Cigarette smoking during pregnancy can harm your baby. Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), such as patches, chewing gum, mouth spray, nasal spray and lozenges, can be used to help you stop smoking.

What are the risks of smoking during pregnancy?

Cigarette smoking during pregnancy increases the likelihood of miscarriage, stillbirth, some birth defects, premature birth, and poor growth of the baby in the womb. Babies born to women who smoke are at higher risk of risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome or “cot death”).

If you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant, you should ideally stop smoking. It is better to give up smoking before pregnancy, but stopping smoking or cutting down in early pregnancy also reduces the risks to your baby. If you need help to stop smoking, please speak to your doctor or midwife, who will be able to offer support.

Can I use NRT in pregnancy?

Yes. Research has shown that using NRT in the form of patches, chewing gum, mouth spray, nasal spray or lozenges is safer for your baby than continuing to smoke. You may be prescribed NRT through a stop smoking service. Vaping is not generally recommended during pregnancy as there is not enough information to say that it is safer for the baby than smoking. For more information, see the Bump leaflet on Nicotine replacement therapy.

Will my baby need extra monitoring during pregnancy? 

As part of their routine antenatal care, most women will be offered a scan at around 20 weeks of pregnancy to look for birth defects and to check the baby’s growth. 

Women who smoke heavily during pregnancy may be offered extra monitoring of their baby’s growth.  

Are there any risks to my baby if the father smokes?

Ideally, you should avoid breathing in smoke from others. Many of the problems that have been linked to smoking in pregnancy have also been linked to passive smoking. 

Who can I talk to if I have questions? 

If you have any questions regarding the information in this leaflet, please discuss them with your health care provider. They can access more detailed medical and scientific information from www.uktis.org.

How can I help to improve drug safety information for pregnant women in the future?

Our online reporting system (MyBump Portal) allows women who are currently pregnant to create a secure record of their pregnancy, collected through a series of questionnaires. You will be asked to enter information about your health, whether or not you take any medicines, your pregnancy outcome and your child's development. You can update your details at any time during pregnancy or afterwards. This information will help us better understand how medicines affect the health of pregnant women and their babies. Please visit the MyBump Portal to register.

General information
Sadly, miscarriage and birth defects can occur in any pregnancy.

Miscarriage occurs in about 1 in every 5 pregnancies, and 1 in every 40 babies are born with a birth defect. This is called the ‘background risk’ and happens whether medication is taken or not.

Most medicines cross the placenta and reach the baby. For many medications this is not a problem. However, some medicines can affect a baby’s growth and development.

If you take regular medication and are planning to conceive, you should discuss whether your medicine is safe to continue with your doctor/health care team before becoming pregnant. If you have an unplanned pregnancy while taking a medicine, you should tell your doctor as soon as possible.

If a new medicine is suggested for you during pregnancy, please make sure that the person prescribing it knows that you are pregnant. If you have any concerns about a medicine, you can check with your doctor, midwife or pharmacist.

Our Bumps information leaflets provide information about the effects of medicines in pregnancy so that you can decide, together with your healthcare provider, what is best for you and your baby.