Fatherhood: Help babies thrive

A new study from the University of Washington gives us an unsettling look into the habits of young mothers. It shows that while they may quit smoking and drinking during pregnancy, they are likely to return to those harmful habits about two years after they give birth. It's refreshing that the study also looks at the habits of the women's partners, realizing, for example, that a former drinker who lives with a drinker has a higher chance of slipping back into old habits.

The habits of women and mothers have always been a focal point of health care professionals, so much so that government guidelines indicate that women of child-bearing age should treat their bodies as pre-pregnant at all times. It's odd that those guidelines don't seem to tell all sexually active males to be in a constant state of pre-fatherhood (being employed, responsible, in good health, etc.). In her 2001 publication, "Smoking & Pregnancy," Laury Oaks pointed out that "in pregnancy advice literature, the moral responsibility of fathers-to-be to protect their babies-to-be is represented unevenly... . This contrasts with anti-smoking messages that uniformly direct mothers-to-be to quit smoking." And Therese Grant, who directs the Seattle Parent-Child Assistance Program, says that some physicians may ask only about the habits of the mother-to-be, neglecting to seek context for the woman's behavior.

We hope that health care professionals start asking expectant mothers about the habits of their partners as a matter of routine. They should also direct them to support services that could help the new fathers (to-be) quit their harmful habits.