What Is The Most Effective Way To Help Pregnant Smokers Quit: Telephone Counseling Or Midwife Delivered Home Based Counseling?

Abstract

Currently 11% – 22% of pregnant women in the United States smoke throughout pregnancy. The effects that smoking has on the development of the fetus include low birth weight, preterm delivery and other serious problems. Peri-natal and neo-natal deaths increase by 33% in the offspring of smokers. Therefore, is its important as clinicians to determine which smoking cessation method will be most effective in the pregnant population. This article compares two methods of smoking cessation, telephone counseling and home based counseling. The purpose was to determine which method was most effective in the pregnant population. The results of this analysis clearly show that neither method significantly reduced the number of pregnant smokers as compared to their control group. This analysis proves that despite the importance of smoking cessation in pregnancy, there is no effective method to help pregnant smokers quit and more studies need to be completed.