Purpose: The various reasons why women abstain from cigarette smoking while pregnant are poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to describe the prevalence of pregnant women's sensory aversions to tobacco smoke and explore the relationships among aversions and smoking behavior. Background: Substantial numbers of women abstain from smoking tobacco while pregnant but up to 70% resume by 12 months postpartum. Women's motivation for abstaining from smoking has been attributed to concerns for the baby. Findings from our previous qualitative research indicated that some women abstained because tobacco smoke had become aversive. In this study we described rates of gustatory and olfactory aversions to tobacco and the relationship of these aversions to smoking behavior in pregnant women. Methods: The convenience sample consisted of 209 pregnant women who smoked tobacco prior to pregnancy. The sample was 65% white and 26% black, 71% had had least a high school education, 16% were primiparas and 84% were multiparas, of whom 47% reported trying to quit with a previous pregnancy. Women were recruited from prenatal clinics. Informed consent was obtained and data were gathered via telephone interview. Results: Gustatory changes in food were reported by 47% of the women and gustatory changes in cigarettes were reported by 53% of the women. Olfactory changes to cigarette smoke were more common and were reported by 63% of the women. Both gustatory and olfactory sensory changes to tobacco smoke were aversive. There was a significant correlation between olfactory changes and women reducing the amount they smoked (x2=4.2, p=.04). Implications: Assessment data about pregnancy-specific physiologic changes that motivate women to abstain from smoking while pregnant can be useful for identifying women who are likely to relapse postpartum when the aversion disappears. Further exploration of underlying physiologic mechanisms for aversions can enhance our knowledge of addiction processes.
Session #1300 - Alcohol & Tobacco Use: Focus on Special Populations
The 30th Annual MNRS Research Conference