France To Pay Pregnant Women To Stop Smoking

As part of a study, pregnant women in France will receive money if they decide to stop smoking. They will be paid incrementally in €20 vouchers and may receive up to €300 if they quit.

The study aims to discover whether the monetary offer will cause the pregnant women to keep off smoking during the time of their pregnancy. The study is being done by the public hospital system in Paris together with the National Cancer Institute, according to the Independent.

France will pay pregnant women €300 to quit smoking https://t.co/z6NtPTkanv

— Globalnews.ca (@globalnews) May 11, 2016

Anti-Smoking Study To Go On For Three Years

To qualify, the pregnant woman should be at least 18 years old and no more than 4.5 months pregnant, according to Global News. The women concerned are those that smoke a minimum of five cigarettes a day. E-cigarettes and other tobacco products will be prohibited.

The study will be tried out for three years. For every scheduled pregnancy check-up, the women will meet with smoking cessation experts and midwives to check her faithfulness in stopping smoking. The women will be giving saliva or urine so her nicotine levels can be monitored.

Pregnant Women In France Smoke More Than Pregnant Women In America

According to New York Magazine, French health minister Marisol Touraine has said that out of the whole of Europe, France is where pregnant women smoke the most. Also, one in five French women do not stop smoking even when they are pregnant in spite of the known health implications for their babies.

In the United States, it was said that around one of 10 American women smoke when they are pregnant. Smoking is prevalent in France, with 31 percent of its adult population engaged in smoking compared to the 28 percent of Europeans and 14 percent of Americans. 

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