Smoking tobacco products can have countless negative health effects on a person. Smoking these products while pregnant is even more dangerous, harming both the mother and the baby.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), smoking during pregnancy can cause problems with the placenta, lead to early births and cause babies to be born too early. It also raises the risk factor of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and the likelihood of the baby being born with a cleft lip or palate. It is important for mothers to stop smoking during pregnancy to protect not only their own health, but the health of their baby.

The CDC reports that 55 percent of women quit during pregnancy, but among these women, 40 percent begin smoking again within 6 months after the birth. A new study published in the journal Addiction confirms this statistic. The study reports that 18,887 pregnant smokers used the stop-smoking support system offered in the United Kingdom between the years 2014-2015. About 43 percent of these women, however, picked up their habit again within six months of giving birth.

Although quitting smoking may be difficult, the benefits are insurmountable.