Expecting mothers who smoke had the chance to join others in a weekly Healthy Choices group held at the Diabetes Association office on Pleasant Street during April and May. This free five-week prenatal program for women in the Fall River community and surrounding towns also included sessions on mental and emotional health, nutrition, physical activity and fitness, and substance abuse prevention and treatment. The program was supported by a Healthy City micro-grant and involved staff from WIC, Greater Fall River Early Intervention Program; Greater Fall River Early Intervention Partnerships Program, and the Institute for Health and Recovery. The program was featured during National Women’s Health Week, a weeklong health observance coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health (OWH). For more information, contact Laura Dellaire at People, Inc. at 508-679-3078, extension115.
 

(Top row) Liz Hartman from the Institute for Health and Recovery in Somerville talks with participants about how nicotine produces an addiction in the brain that makes quitting difficult while affecting the developing fetus. (Middle row, right) Laura Dellaire of People, Inc,, who planned the program, reinforces what Ms. Hartman is saying. (Bottom row) One of the participants looks over some of the materials, including a list of local cessation resources, posters from the "Before you light up, look down" campaign, and information on the effects of second-hand smoke.