Supporting partners to quit smoking

Here you'll find resources and information to support the delivery of interventions to reduce smoking prevalence among pregnant women’s partners or other household members.

An estimated 20% women are exposed to secondhand smoke in the home throughout their pregnancy, and women who live with a smoker are 6 times more likely to smoke throughout pregnancy and more likely to relapse to smoking once the baby is born, if they have quit.

This evidence into practice briefing sets out the evidence and examples of programmes engaging with women’s partners and households to help reduce smoking and secondhand smoke exposure during pregnancy. The briefing includes guidance on what local areas should consider doing to reduce smoking pre-conception, during pregnancy and post-partum.

The briefing sets out:

• Impact of smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke during pregnancy
• Addressing partners’ smoking: National guidance
• What interventions to support partners and other household membersto quitlook like
• Current evidence base for supporting partners to quit:before, during and after pregnancy
• Creating smokefree homes

View and download full briefing here

• Nwosu et al. Reducing Secondhand Smoke Exposure Among Nonsmoking Pregnant Women: A Systematic Review. May 2020
• Planning a pregnancy resources developed by Tommy’s for women and families
• Public Health England. Preconception care: making the case. 2019.FACET (Families Controlling and Eliminating Tobacco) resources on supporting fathers to quit smoking
• NICE [PH26] Smoking: stopping in pregnancy and after childbirth. Recommendation 7: Partners and others in the household who smoke
• NCSCT. Stopping smoking in pregnancy: A briefing for maternity care providers. (p26)