Health professionals have warned females, who carry on smoking throughout pregnancy that the health of their unborn babies is at risk.

The British Medical Association (BMA) Scotland stated that while the number of females smoking during gestation has dropped since the 1990s in spite of increasing evidence of the harm this can cause.

The organization is asking parents to mark World No Tobacco Day by quitting this deadly habit for the sake of their family's health.

The BMA warned not enough was being done to warn parents about the consequences of smoking for their unborn child.

The risks comprise an increased risk or premature birth, stillbirth and cot death.

Study showed that, with each cigarette a pregnant woman smokes, the blood flow through the placenta is reduced for about 15 minutes, causing the baby''s heart rate to increase.

"Around one in five women smokes during pregnancy and, although this is an improvement on previous years, it reflects the lack of knowledge among Scots about the health risks of smoking, not only to themselves, but to the health of their children," Dr Sally Winning, deputy chairman of BMA Scotland, as saying.

Winning added that it was necessary that the Scottish Government tackled the matter of parental smoking.

"Parents should be educated about the effects of smoking, not just on their own health, but to their children," Winning said. (With Inputs from Agencies)