30/03/2020
Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)
Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)
(Date: July 2018. Version: 1) This factsheet has been written for members of the public by the UK Teratology Information Service (UKTIS). UKTIS is a not-for-profit organisation funded by Public Health England on behalf of UK Health Departments. UKTIS has been providing scientific information to health care providers since 1983 on the effects that medicines, recreational drugs and chemicals may have on the developing baby during pregnancy.
Are you pregnant, breastfeeding or planning children? Or are you a healthcare professional providing advice to pregnant or breastfeeding women? IF SO, WE NEED YOUR HELP! Do you have 10-15 minutes to complete a short and simple survey about the information pregnant and breastfeeding women need about their medicines? To have your say please click here.
Why should I stop smoking if I’m pregnant? There is strong evidence that smoking during pregnancy increases the chance of miscarriage, certain birth defects (including cleft lip and palate), premature birth, and poor growth of the baby in the womb, which has been linked to certain health problems later in life. Ideally it is better to have given up smoking before pregnancy. However, research shows that stopping smoking or cutting down significantly in early pregnancy can reduce the likelihood of the baby having some of the health problems linked to smoking. If you want to stop smoking, your doctor or midwife will be able to help.
What is nicotine replacement therapy? Nicotine is highly addictive and stopping smoking often causes withdrawal symptoms that can be difficult to manage. Nicotine replacement products such as patches, chewing gum, mouth spray, nasal spray and lozenges (Nicorette®, NiQuitin®, Nicotinell®) provide a controlled dose of nicotine that can help to control withdrawal symptoms when stopping smoking. Use of these products can then gradually be reduced until the body is ‘weaned off’ nicotine.
What about e-cigarettes (vaping)? E-cigarettes contain nicotine and flavouring, as well as a number of other chemicals. No studies have been carried out to investigate whether vaping in pregnancy can harm the baby. However, many healthcare professionals believe that vaping exposes the baby to fewer toxic chemicals than smoking. Vaping may therefore be an option for pregnant women who cannot stop smoking using other nicotine replacement products.
Will my baby need extra monitoring during pregnancy? As part of their routine antenatal care most women will be offered a scan at around 20 weeks of pregnancy to look for birth defects and to check the baby’s growth. Use of nicotine replacement therapy during pregnancy would not normally require extra monitoring of thr baby, although women who have smoked heavily in pregnancy may be offered additional monitoring of their baby’s growth. https://www.medicinesinpregnancy.org/Templates/Pages/BumpsPIL.aspx?id=102156&epslanguage=en&print=y
1/3