Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s

Effects On Pregnancy And After For Themselves And Their Baby

Melissa Jacobini

Lone Star College - Montgomery

RNSG 2362: Clinical Nursing IV

Professor Mattie McCowen

March 30 , 2022
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
I. Introduction

What is the harms of smoking for pregnant mothers and babies?

Smoking affects the lungs, heart, causes different forms of cancer, and contributes to many other

conditions, It also affects the immune system. Smoking doesn’t only affect the person who

smokes, or those who are around them, but also has the potential to cause many defects and long-

term conditions to the unborn baby.

During pregnancy smoking makes the placenta thinner, this increases the risk of placenta

abruption, placenta previa, preterm labor, hemorrhage, premature rupture of membrane, among

other issues to the mother; what greatly increases the risk of needing a cesarean section and

increases the risk of miscarriage.

The baby gets all nutrients and oxygen from the mother’s blood trough the placenta when the

mother smokes nicotine and all the other chemicals in cigarettes go straight to her blood the baby

shares what that is in your blood, cigarette toxins goes to the baby the same way; Carbon

monoxide from smoking cigarettes cause the baby to become hypoxic, for every cigarette the

mother smokes the baby doesn’t receive adequate oxygen for an hour.

The toxins of smoking during pregnancy and a low supply of oxygen cause tissue damage to the

developing baby, it puts the baby at risk for low birth weight, risk of sudden infant death

syndrome (SIDS), stillbirth, colic, respiratory infections like asthma, and cleft palate among

other conditions including neurological and cardiac damage.

Secondhand and third hand smoke possesses similar risks to both mother and baby but also

presents risks to infants and children that are greater than those to adults since their bodies are

still very new and developing, unable to deal with the greater demands being exposed to second

and third hand smoke require of them repeatedly respiratory infections and ear infections are
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
much more common for babies who are exposed to second and third hand smoke. A baby

exposed to tobacco smoke in the womb and through second-hand smoke as an infant is more

likely to develop type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease and be obese as an adult. This risk

is increased even if they are non-smokers throughout their lives.

Third hand smoke lingers in the rooms for months and years after a person does not smoke there,

is the state cigarette smoke smell you can recognize when you enter a room when somebody

used to smoke continually, this is caused by the particles on the smoke settling on every surface

of the room, or car, it also shows on the yellowing of walls, furniture and fabrics; opening

windows does not get rid of third hand smoke it needs to be wiped down with cleaning solutions,

this particles are not completely inert and can be disturbed sitting on a sofa covered with third

hand smoke would disturb them and they will float on the air and enter the babies respiratory

system. Is important to encourage smokers to not smoke around pregnant women and babies and

immediately wash their hands and if possible, their shirts before handling a baby after smoking.

As well as not smoke indoors.

Breast milk also transmits nicotine and cigarette toxins to the baby and is important to take

adequate measures to prevent this transmission, breastfeeding provides many benefits to babies

over formula feed so is important to encourage young mothers to breastfeed if they choose to do

so. If a mother is a smoker and will choose to smoke after her baby is born there is things the

mother can do to prevent the exposure for the baby to these toxins. Such measures are never to

smoke before breast feeding but after, if possible express milk and have a reserve to feed the

baby if the mother has smoked a cigarette, emphasizing to not smoke indoors or around her baby

as well as wash her hands and face and change her clothing after smoking and before interacting

with her baby, although ideally is recommended to quit smoking if possible reducing the amount
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
of cigarettes smoked and attempting distraction techniques as going for a walk or using a stress

ball, even eating a piece of candy to distract the need for a cigarette can be measures taken.

The effects of smoking follow the baby trough their life and is something that is in our hands to

prevent with the right education.

Comprehensive Assessment of Target Audience

Target Teaching Audience pregnant adolescent (9th – 12th Graders) this teenagers are

Prior knowledge: is not uncommon for teenagers to have been exposed to smoking and

cigarettes by this age. From their peers and at home from family members, as well as many who

have started smoking by this age. They have a basic knowledge of the dangers of smoking for

themselves and most likely have seen advertisements and have been told that smoking is harmful

to the fetus but are potentially unaware of the specific dangers.

Developmental level: Erikson’s stage of “identity vs. role confusion.” During this stage

adolescents are searching for a their own identity and tend to challenge the roles that family,

school and society assign them. Teenagers in this state put value on social relationships and the

acceptance of their peers.

Physical During puberty teenagers have increased growth in all aspects including sexuality what

paired with hormones related to pregnancy both are periods of stress on the body due to rapid

changes

Emotional: Teenagers tend to have a hard time regulating their hormones during puberty and

pregnancy what makes them more susceptible to emotional outbursts anger and depression, as

well as the insecurities of this stage in life where they are finding themselves and seek validation

trough the acceptance of their peers while generally rejecting the established ideas from their

parents and teachers. They require a method of communication that validates their thought
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
process and growing maturity and experience. Adding the confusion of becoming pregnant and

having to care for a baby can be an extremely stressful and emotional time.

Motivation: The need for acceptance and validation is the biggest motivation for teenagers they

this make them become part of groups who are popular among their peers, social success and

pursing relationships indicates to them that they have been accepted. This is balanced in this

group with the motivation of expectant mothers to protect and care for their babies, is important

to provide them with education and tools that will not seem to alienate them from their peers so

they will accept and implement them more readily.

Preferred learning style: Because this is a diverse group of young people they present diverse

learning styles, auditory visual and kinesthetic way, they are energetic and can be hard to get

their interest and attention.

Environmental factors: environmental factors in school are set to provide an adequate learning

environment, at the same time since our education is not in a classroom setting this might make

the teenagers more prone to become distracted, is important to have an environment that is set up

to minimize distractions where the teenagers can feel comfortable and not judged by their peers.

To facilitate open communication is also important to provide the teens enough privacy where

they will not be overheard by teachers or anybody else. A well lit and room with comfortable

temperature.

Learning Need/Diagnosis

Due to the challenges teenagers face regarding peer pressure and their role in society paired with

their lack of extensive knowledge regarding smoking effects and their heightened emotional state

they are the group at higher risk to take up smoking. Even though they have heard from authority

figures and media about the dangers of smoking this dangers related to pregnancy and infants
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
are rarely discussed with teens due to the prevalent belief that an open discussion on sexuality

and pregnancy might increase the young people’s interest in sexual activities. Women expecting

their first child are generally extremely undereducated on all the risks and potential

complications that smoking presents to their child and are simply told that is harmful. Teenagers

have a very curious and inquisitive attitude towards life and information, but at the same time

reject information that is not based on evidence but randomly dispensed as facts without any

support. Young pregnant mothers are at a higher risk of taking up unhealthy habits if they lack a

string support system that can provide for their emotional and social needs. They also many

times lack the resources to learn this information. Presenting the information in a clear concise

manner without judgment in an environment that is conductive for the teen mother to feel at ease

is crucial to this need.

Short-Term Goals

The short-term goal is to have Teens verbalize the understanding of the harmful effects of

nicotine and smoking on the regnant mother and the baby and verbalize understanding of the

long terms effects of smoking on the development of children.

Long-Term Goals

The long-term goals are to prevent teens from using nicotine and smoking around their child and

other children and during further pregnancies also to share this knowledge with other pregnant

friends and relatives. Teens need to verbalize understanding of how they could handle situations

where they will be exposed to cigarette smoke during pregnancy or if their babies are exposed to

second or third hand smoke.

Interventions

Provide an open and nonjudgmental learning environment.

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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
Communicate with the teenagers in a nonjudgmental manner providing them the opportunity to

feel comfortable and heard. When introducing the subject referencing that we all are around

smokers all the time and that the focus of the education is not to judge smokers but provide tools

to protect their baby.

Provide optimal environment for learning.

The ideal environment will be well lit, comfortable, spacious, and relatively quiet in the school

setting providing a large print engaging poster board that is visible and has the salient points

easily accessible to the teenagers.

Provide multiple formats for education that make it interactive.

Verbally by open communication in a nonjudgmental and open manner, with a friendly tone that

promotes engagement, promoting participation with open ended questions that allow the students

to express their ideas in the topic, addressing points in the teaching outline with the aid of a well

crafted bright engaging posterboard that supports with evidence based information and facts the

teaching points, and a handout at the end of the session for the students to read and share that

will reinforce the points we have taught them. Finishing with questions to the students as well as

a minute for them to ask any further questions that might help them expand their knowledge or

clarify any doubts they might have.

Having open answer questions to the students to increase their engagement in the education

process and repeating the questions at the end not only measures their understanding but

reinforce the most relevant points.

Methods of Evaluation:
The assessment process starts with asking questions relative to each point in the education

outline that not only measures their knowledge but promotes their critical thinking in order to
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
engage them and at the end of the education session reiterate the questions and ask them to

explain what measures they have learned that they can implement in their daily life.

Quiz

 Do you know how long does the baby loses oxygen when the mother smokes one

cigarette? Open answer Answer: one hour

 Do you know anybody who smokes?

 Does cigarette smoke linger in the room long after a person has smoked indoors

Answer: yes

 Is there a way we can reduce the effects of second and third hand smoke for the baby

Answer Yes

Teaching Outline

Topic: The dangers of smoking during pregnancy

Target Audience: Teenager mothers and pregnant girls high school age 14-19
Possible Obstacles to Overcome: Age’s group reluctance to hear advice from ‘Old people’,
belief that one cigarette is not going to harm the baby, belief that your body keeps baby safe
from everything
Reason for this teaching: the proven effects of smoking not only on the mother’s body but on
baby’s development and health

1. Introduction:
A. effects of smoking in general for everybody.
A Very general view on Physically how smoking affects different organs of the body
and how this affects the mother during pregnancy and labor, mentioning the risks
during pregnancy as bleeding, placental rupture, blood pressure, etc.

2. The effects of smoking cigarettes on the fetus

A. How smoke gets to the baby when is in uterus, trough the placenta and the
mother’s blood.
B. What happens to the baby while mother smokes? Each effect as hypoxia and
how hypoxia affects the baby development.
C. The long-term effects of smoking during pregnancy on the baby, at birth and
trough childhood and life, as premature birth, low birth weight,
underdeveloped lungs, SIDS, asthma, etc.
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
3. Secondhand and third hand smoke
A. When you smoke in the same room as your baby and how the direct
exposure to cigarette smoke chemicals impacts babies and small children
developing lungs.
B. When you breastfeed your baby after a cigarette and ways prevent exposure
to nicotine trough breast milk if they are smokers.
C. When your clothes stink of cigarette and hold your baby even if you smoked
in another room third hand smoke and methods to avoid exposing the baby to
these chemicals.

Materials that will be used:

trifold with pictures of each point.
A handout with the main points of the teaching
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
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References

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smoking#:~:text=Smoking%20can%20cause%20low%20milk,possible%20between

%20smoking%20and%20breastfeeding

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2015, July 15). 2004 surgeon general's report

highlights: Impact on unborn babies, infants, children, and adolescents. Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from

https://www.cdc.gov/tobacco/data_statistics/sgr/2004/highlights/children/index.htm

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, April 28). Smoking during pregnancy.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from

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%20smoking%20and%20cleft%20lip.&text=Studies%20also%20suggest%20a

%20relationship%20between%20tobacco%20and%20miscarriage

Kataoka, M.C., Carvalheira, A.P.P., Ferrari, A.P. et al. Smoking during pregnancy and harm

reduction in birth weight: a cross-sectional study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 18, 67

(2018). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-018-1694-4

Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2022, August 2). The dangers of

thirdhand smoke. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from

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smoke/faq-20057791#:~:text=People%20are%20exposed%20to%20the,food%20items
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Teaching Project: Education For Pregnant Teenagers On Smoking And It’s Effects On Pregnancy And
After For Themselves And Their Baby
%20in%20their%20mouths

public Health, I. (n.d.). Top 10 smoking . Retrieved April 7, 2023, from

https://phd5.idaho.gov/Documents/Community-Health/Smoking-Pregnancy-Handout.pdf

QuitNow-NH. (2022, August 18). Pregnancy and Smoking. QuitNow New Hampshire. Retrieved

April 7, 2023, from https://quitnownh.org/pregnancy/

The Royal Women's Hospital. (n.d.). Breastfeeding and cigarette smoke. The Royal Women's

Hospital. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from https://www.thewomens.org.au/health-

information/breastfeeding/medicines-drugs-and-breastfeeding/breastfeeding-and-

cigarette-smoke

Second-hand smoke and third-hand smoke: Effects on children. Raising Children Network.

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smoke#:~:text=Children%20exposed%20to%20second%2Dhand,death%20in

%20infancy%20(SUDI)