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To smoke or not to smoke (during pregnancy)?

Discussion in 'Marijuana' started by DK01, Feb 16, 2015.

  1. DK01

    DK01 Active Contributor

    I read a story online recently about a mother of two girls (4 & 2) who was a regular marijuana smoker. During her first pregnancy she managed to completely abstain from marijuana, however during the second she smoked throughout. The children are both said to be ahead of their peers in both their cognitive and mental development, with the younger child (during whom's pregnancy she smoked) being seen as a potentially exceptional child, starting school 2 years early.

    I'd like to know people's thoughts/experiences with this :)
  2. Plus

    Plus Member

    I honestly don't think a person should be intoxicating themselves at all during pregnancy. I agree that it's each person's life and it should be their own choice but when you are carrying another one inside of you it really can impact their health.

    It's a matter of chance if a baby has some sort of defect or deficiency, I've known of plenty of people who have drank, smoked cigarette or marijuana, or even harsher drugs and had their children born without complications.
    Then again most things can cause serious issues inside of the wombs and have a chance at harming or killing the baby while it is still inside of the mother.
  3. I don't think you should be doing any intoxicating drugs while pregnant. There are those who have "lucked out" with drinking, drugs, etc. during their pregnancies and their kids have been fine, but there are usually a lot of risks included in doing things like that during a pregnancy. I would ask yourself, is it worth it to risk the health of your unborn for whatever high you'll be getting from whatever you're taking?
  4. JoshPosh

    JoshPosh Community Champion

    So you have a story of one female that had a baby that is now beyond her years and is smart as hell, while her mom smoked pot while carrying her. I don't think one good example should rewrite the rule, that smoking pot while pregnant is good.
  5. JohnBrock

    JohnBrock Active Contributor

    While I know it may seem unfair and hard, in my opinion, you should lay off all intoxication of your body during pregnancy, whatever the consensus, there is no doubt that what enters your body probably, to some extend, also enters your baby's - at this point, your baby is inherently dependant on how you treat yourself, and by extend it - don't squander that experience
  6. Charli

    Charli Community Champion

    I don't know about scientific studies pertaining to this but I'm sure it's way less harmful than cigarettes so I could see how it would be okay. I ink it should be fairly safe to do so but it's probably still best to be completely sure and seek advice from a doctor. Also I'm thinking vapor would probably be better than smoking or probably even just eating it.
  7. awesomeaniruddh

    awesomeaniruddh Active Contributor

    Studies have shown that while there doesn't seem to be any link between birth defects and smoking during pregnancy, it is not totally risk-free either.

    Avoid it, just to be safe. While both kids being exceptional doesn't seem to be a coincidence, it is one story among thousands. We don't have any conclusive evidence.
  8. Janie

    Janie Active Contributor

    I have a story too, I know a girl who smoked through her whole pregnancy and I later taught her son and he had some pretty severe ADHD.

    There's always a story. It's called anecdotal evidence and it is usually untrustworthy.

    I know another story too, of a parent who thought their child was gifted and they were in the "gifted" program at their school. Well, the standards at that school were so low, that the "gifted" program was just regular school anywhere else.
  9. DK01

    DK01 Active Contributor

    I guess you guys are right. I really wanted to take the discussion into more relative terms. For example I think an alcoholic who continues to drink during pregnancy will almost certainly cause some harm to the child. Yet alcohol is freely available and legal and poses no risk to your liberty. Marijuana on the other hand does not come with the same (almost) guarantee, yet here in the UK its completely illegal, put in the same class as amphetamines and you could spend up to 3 years in jail for possession.
  10. Rainman

    Rainman Community Champion

    Weed makes someone super smart? I have my doubts. Anyway, expectant mothers shouldn't be smoking or using any other drug because almost everything that goes into her body gets to her unborn child. Even if someone doesn't care much about giving up on drugs for themselves, if they are responsible [and there's no reason why they shouldn't be] then they ought to give that unborn child a thought and keep their fingers off drugs for a little while.

    http://www.livescience.com/42853-marijuana-during-pregnancy-baby-brain.html
    " Using marijuana during pregnancy could affect a baby's brain development by interfering with how brain cells are wired . . . "Our advice is that [pregnant] mothers should avoid marijuana,"said neuroscientist Tibor Harkany of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden."
  11. missbishi

    missbishi Community Champion

    Yes and my grandmother smoked 40 cigarettes a day and lived to be 102. OK, she didn't really, but it's just one of those stories. Everyone has a story about someone who didn't look after their health but still came up smelling of roses. They don't mean that guidelines need to be re-written, they are just part of the oddities of life.
  12. JoanMcWench

    JoanMcWench Community Champion

    I think it depends on what you mean by 'smoke'. Inhaling carcinogens is always a bad thing when pregnant or not pregnant. Ignoring that important aspect, I don't think the weed is associated with the higher intelligence. That's just good genetics separate from using drugs.

    I've always subscribed to the theory that one should deal with pregnancy as naturally as possible. It's best to keep anything questionable out of your system.
  13. jbepp

    jbepp Active Contributor

    Definitely no.
    Smoking in general is extremely dangerous when pregnant. If you absolotely want to have some fun I'd recommend getting some edibles instead.
  14. Shimus

    Shimus Community Champion

    Like a broken record and everyone else on the thread, you shouldn't be doing anything considered illegal or potentially harmful to your child. If you want to be a proper mother, that's understand and fine but don't continue usage of drugs until after they are born. There are exceptions when you've had one or two bad days in a month of your pregnancy and smoke to relax a bit. But don't abuse it or continually use it.
  15. musicmonster

    musicmonster Senior Contributor

    I think it is still best not to smoke anything if you are pregnant. You don't want to risk what the effect it could do to your baby anyway.
  16. serenity

    serenity Community Champion

  17. dyanmarie25

    dyanmarie25 Community Champion

    That might be a very rare case. But remember, not everything that works well with others can also give you the same results. I will never risk my pregnancy just for smoking marijuana.
  18. Coltodor

    Coltodor Member

    You shouldn't be smoking during a pregnancy. You don't want anything getting into the baby system. I suggest you do some research behind that story. Does it come from a reliable study or news website?
  19. zaerine

    zaerine Community Champion

    Even there is a child born with smoking weed mother with no defect, I do not think it is a good idea to smoke during pregnancy. The mother should be responsible of her babies health especially while inside her body. She should not risk it because of her addiction.
  20. I'm going to vote no on this one. I know in some cultures they do see it as ok. In particular Rastafarians believe it is ok for a pregnant woman to smoke a little during pregnancy. I don't know. I just couldn't see myself pregnant and doing anything but taking care of myself and eating well.