Breastfeeding may prevent postpartum smoking relapse
Thursday, April 16, 2015 - 11:00
in Health & Medicine
While a large number of women quit or reduce smoking upon pregnancy recognition, many resume smoking postpartum. Previous research has estimated that approximately 70 percent of women who quit smoking during pregnancy relapse within the first year after childbirth, and of those who relapse, 67 percent resume smoking by three months, and up to 90 percent by six months. A new study indicates the only significant predictor in change in smoking behaviors for women who smoked during pregnancy was in those who breastfed their infant, finding that women who breastfed their infants for at least 90 days smoked less in the months following childbirth than women who breastfed for a shorter period of time or who did not breastfeed at all.