Dr Annabel Shafe, a paediatrician, has warned nursing mothers to stop smoking as there are potential dangers for babies inhailing the fumes from the cigarette.
Shafe gave the warning in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja in commemoration of the World No Tobacco Day.
According to her, exposing toddlers and small children to cigarette smoke could lead to coughs, stuffy nose, chest cold and ear infection.
She added that if the habit was prolonged, it could lead to lungs cancer, heart disease and eye disease, among others.
She said that tiny particles of pollutants found in cigarette smoke contain chemicals which were in large numbers and dangerous.
The expert said that babies and other young children were more susceptible to the smoke than adults because their lungs are still developing.
She said: “When a mother smokes any place toxic particulate from tobacco smoke gets into your hair, skin and clothing which can still be inhaled and prove harmful to infants and children.
“And by the time you come into contact with your baby, even if you’re not smoking at the time, the baby comes in contact with those toxins can have a serious effect.
“Even if you go outside to smoke or use fan to clear away smoke in the room after smoking the smoke linger on fabrics and dust in a room after smoke has cleared.
“A small amount of exposure to this kind of pollutant can bring problems in children, many parents under estimate the dangers perceiving smoke could impose.”
She added that toddlers and children were vulnerable to exposure to smoke that can linger for hours in a place, because they are likely to touch or try to eat contaminated surfaces.
However, she noted that breast feeding is very important to the baby because of the natural protection it gives to baby.
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