"Drug babies on the rise"

This report from the Australian probably has significance for New Zealand.

Cannabis smoking during pregnancy is a more dire problem in Australia than previously thought, and the effect on babies is severe, a world-first study has found.

The problem is compounded by the fact that 90 per cent of drug-addicted expectant mothers smoke cigarettes, raising further the risk to their babies.

An Early Start evaluation programme from Christchurch which looked at those families most in need of support services found that 63 percent of mothers smoked during pregnancy and one in six used cannabis. 90 percent were on welfare.