Achi news desk-
Researchers found that 40% of participants who received the most vouchers (£300 vouchers over 12 months) were still smoke-free when their child reached their first birthday.
Of the participants who received fewer vouchers (£180 vouchers over three months), 21% remained smoke free when their child turned one.
This compares to 28% of participants in the study who received only the usual postnatal care.
Professor Michael Ussher, lead author of the study, said: “We know that most women who stop smoking during pregnancy return to smoking shortly afterwards, which can cause significant health problems for the mother and her family.
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“Our study shows that high street vouchers, delivered over 12 months, could help women avoid returning to smoking after their baby is born.
“Most women who smoke during pregnancy and postnatally live in the UK’s most deprived communities, areas hardest hit by the cost of living crisis. These vouchers have helped women to stay smoke free but also to save money by not buying cigarettes.”
Previous studies have shown that voucher schemes are effective in helping women quit smoking during pregnancy, but this is the first study to suggest that such schemes could help mothers stay smoke-free after for their child to be born.
The study included a total of 462 participants, a third of whom received £300 worth of vouchers over 12 months, a third of whom received £180 of vouchers over three months, and a third of whom received normal postnatal care only.
As many as three quarters of women who quit smoking during pregnancy are likely to return to smoking within six months of giving birth, increasing their risk of smoking-related illness and death as well as their children’s risks of health problems due to secondhand smoke and becoming smokers.
This study, alongside previous pregnancy studies, is now informing a national government-backed scheme in England to offer vouchers during pregnancy and after birth to all pregnant women who smoke.
Research continues to see if the women who did not smoke when their baby was one year old are still not smoking a year or more later.
