Sir, - Considerable emphasis has been placed on the benefits to expectant mothers in taking folic acid supplements both before and during pregnancy (The Irish Times, 2 July). Few would deny that this is a most laudable aim.
However, the worrying fact that so many expectant mothers blithely smoke their way through their pregnancies seems to have been neglected by us as a society. The dangers of smoking - in this and other contexts - have been well rehearsed. It is time to put an end to this gross act of selfishness perpetrated by expectant mothers who insist on gratifying their personal desires by puffing on this dreaded weed. - Yours, etc.,
Brian Hunt, Ballinagee, Enniskerry, Co Wicklow.