The stigma around smoking in pregnancy is causing women to do it in secret

Demonise anything and you'll drive it behind closed doors.

As humans, we're desperately aware of what our peers think of us - and act accordingly. It's the reason we all follow social cues, copy others and seek out people who behave like us. It's also why we tend to do things that might be considered 'wrong' when no-one is looking. Pregnant women who smoke are hiding their habit and doing it in private, a new study in the UK has found. Women who smoked told researchers that judgement from midwives and nurses made them feel "alienated" and caused them to have "awkward" relationships with healthcare professionals. Some women in the study, carried out at Cardiff University, also said that their partners judged them for enjoying a cigarette while they were expecting, reports BBC News. A number of those who took part believed that smoking at home rather than in public is 'acceptable'.

"I just don’t think it looks good when you’ve got bump on show walking around with a fag in your hand," one woman told researchers. "If you want to do it in your house, that’s fine."

Working class mums-to-be are especially prone to criticism, Dr Aimee Grant of Cardiff University's Centre for Trials Research said. She believes that judging women is doing more harm than good. "Our study shows that these looks and comments - including by members of the public - irritate and alienate pregnant women, making them less likely to seek help. "No one wants to be judged and shamed." Smoking in pregnancy has been linked to issues like miscarriage, stillbirth, low birth weights, premature births and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).