43 per cent of women resume smoking after birth, research shows

According to research conducted by the universities of Nottingham and York, 43 per cent of women who quit smoking during pregnancy resume the habit after they give birth.

The analysis, published in Addiction, also showed that just 13 per cent of women who enrol in quit smoking programmes are able to stop during pregnancy. The news comes as Public Health England (PHE) has called for more support to be available to help expecting mothers quit smoking permanently.

The research examined the success of women who used smoking cessation services to help them quit, pooling several international trials, involving almost 1,000 women between 1989 and 2014.

While the research suggested that only a minority of women who attempted to quit smoking succeeded, figures from the Health and Social Care Information Centre show there has been a steady decline in pregnant smokers. The data found that 11 per cent of pregnant women were recorded as smokers at the time of giving birth in 2014-15, 15 per cent lower than the number recorded in 2007.

The research also found that there were regional variations across the country, with more pregnant smokers in disadvantaged areas.

Professor Jonathan Grigg of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health said: "We need to fully support parents in the first few months with their baby to highlight to them the importance of keeping their home smoke-free. Health visitor and smoking-cessation services are vital to this process, but with the £200m reduction in funding for public health, these services are at risk."

Rosanna O'Connor, of PHE said: "While the rate of women smoking during pregnancy continues to fall, further action is needed to support those who find it more difficult to stop and to help those who do stop, to stop smoking forever.

"It is vital to protect babies from smoke during pregnancy and in the early months of life. The best protection for mothers, their babies and partners is to quit smoking for good."