PA
Figures released by the Department of Health show that almost six out of 10 teenage mothers are continuing to smoke while pregnant.
The news comes just a week after celebrity Mum of the Year Stacey Solomon was photographed smoking at seven months pregnant.
The statistics from the Department of Health reveal the percentage of people in England who smoke has fallen from 21 per cent to 20 per cent in the past year with a five per cent decline in the number of younger smokers.
Many young women have realised the health implications of cigarette smoking, with the numbers of teen girls smoking falls to an all-time low over the past 10 years from 31 per cent to 17 per cent, However, the rise in the number of pregnant teens who smoke will concern health organisations.
The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health recently heard that only a third of teenage mums-to-be manage to give up smoking when they knew they were pregnant, compared with two-thirds of older mothers.
As part of its tobacco control plan, the Government is looking to further cut the number of women who smoke at the time of giving birth to 11 per cent. Currently it is 13.4 per cent.
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