If you think about it, pregnant smokers have twice the incentive to quit that the rest of us have – their health and the health of their unborn baby. There are few things as powerful as a mother’s love for her child. So it may not be a surprise to readers that pregnant smokers typically quit at rates higher than that of smokers who are not pregnant - men and women alike.

After all, smoking during pregnancy is the leading cause of poor pregnancy outcomes. This can include miscarriage, low birth weight, premature birth, and a dramatic increase in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Quitting smoking early in pregnancy can dramatically increase the odds of having a health baby. For health plans this means much lower costs associated with child birth.

But, what may surprise you is how many women return to smoking after giving birth. Relapse rates among postpartum women can be as high as 80%. The causes for relapse are many. The long and sleepless nights of tending to a new born can be taxing. New mothers who are recently quit often yearn for those few, precious quiet moments they can call their own – and nostalgic memories of smoking can fit that need. Believing that quitting during pregnancy is important, many new mothers do not understand how important it is to the health of their baby to stay quit. Given the clear link between depression and smoking, postpartum depression can also trigger a return to smoking.

So while these higher quit rates among pregnant smokers are encouraging, they are really misleading. With the high relapse rate during the first 12 months after giving birth, the long-term quit rate is really much lower. Since most quit smoking programs are only a couple months long, they can be insufficient in their intensity to sustain a new mother into the postpartum period.

This is why the Free and Clear Quit for Life Program® developed a 10-call program for pregnant smokers. With more calls for pregnant women, the program continues support for the woman into the postpartum period. Prior to delivery, Quit Coaches® begin preparing the woman for the transition to being a new mother. They help them develop the knowledge and the skills to stay quit, and protect their young children from the serious harm of secondhand smoke.

Quitting smoking is the most important thing any person can do to improve their health, but with pregnant smokers and new mothers, the stakes are doubled. These women, and their babies, deserve all the help health care can and should provide.