Hot Topic (3/21): Smoking while pregnant is child abuse and should be illegal?

[Cafe GroupAdmin]

Smoking while pregnant is child abuse, and should be illegal.

PRO:  
Abortion is legal. Child abuse is not. Cigarette use is proven by the surgeon general to cause SIDS, low birth weight which is a leading cause of infant mortality,still birth and countless other problems. Smoking while pregnant puts over 4,000 chemicals into your system, ending up into your babies. The worst of these being:
*Benzene- a carcinogen obtained from coal and petroleum.
*Formaldehyde- a carcinogen used as embalming fluid that causes respritory and gastrointestinal problems.
*Ammonia- a cleaning agent used as flavoring.
*Acetone- used as nail polish remover.
*Tar- 70% of which stays in smokers body.
*Nicotine- addictive poison.
*Carbon Monoxide- poisonous gas, same as car exhaust.
*Arsenic- rat poison
*Hydrogen Cyanide- gas chamber poison.

A mother would never give her infant these things in his bottle. Being selfish is something you have to give up after you decide to have a baby. Unfortunately, children are abused everyday so there are proper laws in place. Babies that a mother has decided to keep should be protected by the law from child abuse. Thus, parents being held accountable for things they do effecting their offspring's health, before and after birth.

CON:
Sure, smoking while pregnant may be bad. However, it is not the government's job to dictate health practices to the individual. This type of law would clearly violate a mother's right to privacy. That is why abortion is legal. If you made a law that said that pregnant women should not be allowed to smoke, you would have to pass a law that would say that second hand smoke around children should be illegal. This will never happen. Thus, I must disagree with you. A mother should practice personal responsibility in this area. It is not the job of the government to dictate these types of things. Plus, child abuse is much different than second hand smoke and smoking while pregnant. Smoking while pregnant does not have an immediate impact, nor to the extent that child abuse does. In order for serious problems to occur, excessive smoking must occur. Child abuse will result in immediate serious damage occurring, thus it is illegal. Also, are you stating that everyone whose mother smoked while pregnant with them is somehow physically deformed or handicapped? I know for a fact that this is not true. Especially in the 60's and 70's many many pregnant women smoked, yet their children turned out just fine.

The government has no right to become even more deeply involved in the personal rights of the citizen. They are already too involved. It is also not the government's job to censor everyone from the evils of the world. A law like this would be irrational and unconstitutional.
read more pros and cons here

What are your thoughts? Should smoking and drinking while pregnant be considered child abuse and made illegal?

[Godgaveme4]

I would be okay with banning alcohol and smoking during pregnancy if we can finally admit that abortion kills babies and it should also be illegal.

You cannot have it both ways.  You cannot say a woman cannot smoke and drink because it may harm the baby and then turn around and say my choice my body when it comes to killing the baby.

[tornados4]

Well, this is a slippery slope.  In reguards to drinking, there is more that can happen to a fetus or baby than with smoking.  I have known several women who had one glass of wine while pregnant on a speacial occasion.  Thier babies were just fine.  Before I had a brain, I smoked with my first pregancy.  She is perfectly fine and suffered no ill effects from me doing so.  I think people should just mind their own business, and quit worrying about what other people are doing, from abortion to if you smoke while you are pregnant or smoke around your kids. I think there are enough government in our private lives.

[hsteele]

This is hard. I think that abortion should be available because of some situations. My Body choice has nothing to do with my view on abortion. But I do think that smoking and drinking while pregnant is child abuse. However there are some Drs, mostly outside of the US that say that a glass of red wine is not only not dangerous, but beneficial to the pregnancy. So it is hard to judge that.

[Godgaveme4]

Quoting hsteele:

 But I do think that smoking and drinking while pregnant is child abuse.

Then you have to admit that the baby is a living child.  Then you have to admit that abortion kills that child.  You cannot say abuse on something that does not feel pain or is actually alive.  It cannot go both ways.

[Mommy_of_Riley]

Sorry but you can't make things like that illegal...  Slippery Slope.

[hsteele]

I never said that I didn't. I said that there are reasons when an abortion is necessary. Its terrible and tragic and heartbreaking, but there are reasons. If it were possible to maintain the availability of abortions for those reasons, and if it were possible to make fair decisions on who fits the criteria, then I would approve of a ban on other abortions. Yes. Like I said, I do not agree when it comes to abortion with My body my choice. I have never said I did. I just think it is difficult to decide who gets to get an abortion what the criteria should be, what determines a medical necessity, does mental health qualify?

Quoting Godgaveme4:

Quoting hsteele:

 But I do think that smoking and drinking while pregnant is child abuse.

Then you have to admit that the baby is a living child.  Then you have to admit that abortion kills that child.  You cannot say abuse on something that does not feel pain or is actually alive.  It cannot go both ways.

[Joqui]

My choice is to never have an abortion no matter what happens (the only time that I would be really tormented about it is if I were told that I was going to die.. then I would have to think of my other 2 children who need me to be there for them)... again, that's my choice.. I too feel that in some cases (incest mainly and in cases that the mother might die) abortions are necessary. I don't consider a fetus to not be a baby... so this is why I think abortion is a VERY hard decision... I am glad I don't have to make that decision.

With that said, I do think drinking excessively and smoking (cigs, pot, or what have you) is dangerous for a fetus. I don't know about outlawing it because again, this is a tricky situation, what if the mother doesn't know she's preggo? what if the mother is not educated on the affects (I know unlikely but you'd be surprised)... what if the mother is depressed? ..

I really don't have a good answer to this but that I hope that when pregnant women decide to make the best choices for their fetus... some would argue that back in the day it was ok to smoke and drink while pregnant and babies were born fine... I am wondering how many babies were not born fine?

[EireLass]

If that were a law, I'd say it's more abusive it drink WHILE the kid is around, not just while in-utero. I wonder if the manufacturing of cigarettes has changed over the years. My mother was a heavy smoker, smoked through all 8 pregnancies. It was the "socially acceptable" thing to do, to be a smoker. Most of my friends moms smoked. There never seemed to be a problem with weight of baby, health of baby, etc. I'm not advocating for smoking while pregnant, I think smoking is gross. 

[home-sweet-home]

Quoting Godgaveme4:

I would be okay with banning alcohol and smoking during pregnancy if we can finally admit that abortion kills babies and it should also be illegal.

You cannot have it both ways.  You cannot say a woman cannot smoke and drink because it may harm the baby and then turn around and say my choice my body when it comes to killing the baby.

My thoughts exactly! It's either a baby or its not.

BTW, formaldahyde is also in vaccines, just saying lol

[cherry41089]

yes!!!