New research from Queen Mary University of London suggests that e-cigarettes are just as safe as nicotine patches for pregnant women, and could help more women quit. A study published in Natural medicineis the first to study the safety and effectiveness of e-cigarettes among pregnant smokers.

While many women quit smoking when they are pregnant, some find it difficult to quit smoking, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Two smoking cessation drugs were tested pregnant smokers stillnicotine replacement therapies such as nicotine or chewing gum patchesand bupropion – an antidepressant. Nicotine replacement has been shown to have only limited effects, while bupropion has had none.

A new study shows that, as is the case with non-pregnant smokers, electronic cigarettes may be more effective than nicotine patches and pose no greater danger to mothers and infants during pregnancy.

The study involved 1,140 pregnant smokers, who were randomly divided into two groups. One was given e-cigarettes and the other was given nicotine patches. The rates of quit smoking in the two study groups were the same, but some successful smokers in the patch group quit smoking using e-cigarettes rather than patches. When controlled, the e-cigarette group had better proven smoking cessation rates in late pregnancy than the patch group (6.8% vs. 4.4%, p

These rates of quitting smoking are low because they required women to send saliva samples to confirm that they do not smoke, and very few have done so. Looking at self-assessment of abstinence in late pregnancy, 19.8% vs. 9.7% (n.

Childbirth outcomes and side effects in women were the same in the two groups, except for low birth weight (children weighing less than 2.5 kg), which was less common in the e-cigarette group (9.8% vs. 14.8%). most likely because women from the e-cigarette group smoked less.

Professor Peter Hayek, director of health and lifestyle research at Queen Mary University of London, said: “While pregnant smokers are better off quitting without continuing to use nicotine when it’s hard, e-cigarettes can help smokers quit smoking and are just as safe as nicotine patches. Many smoking cessation services already use e-cigarettes as an option for smokers in general. Such use can now be used in smoking cessation services for pregnant women too ”.