9-26-13 pregnant women-smoking

The Fond du Lac County Public Health Officer is concerned about statistics that show more pregnant women in Wisconsin smoke compared to the national average.  State health officials say at least 13 percent of women in Wisconsin smoke during pregnancy…higher than the national average of nine percent.  Public Health Officer Kim Mueller says that's terrible.  "There's something that we need to do, we need to change our message or something,"  Mueller told WFDL news.  Mueller says while working as a maternal child health nurse probably half of the pregnant women she counseled smoked.  Mueller says smoking while pregnant can lead to a number of complications including miscarriage, premature or low-weight birth, birth defects and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. The state’s First Breath program provides counseling to pregnant women who want to quit smoking.  September is national infant mortality month.