Despite the harmful effects of smoking on reproductive health, about 22% women continue to smoke, putting themselves and their baby at risk. But the good news is that by stopping smoking before and during pregnancy, women can greatly reduce the health risks associated with cigarette smoking
Tobacco Use and Reproductive Outcomes in Women
Here are consequences of smoking on reproductive health of women:
Delayed Conception/Infertility : A woman who smokes and plans a pregnancy has a risk of delayed conception when compared to a nonsmoking woman. Smoking decreases the probability of being pregnant to about one-third per cycle. Several studies have also showed that smoking women have infertility problems
Low-birth weight of the baby : Babies of women who smoke have low-birth weight when compared to the babies of non-smoking women. Low birth weight is very dangerous for the baby as it can cause neonatal morbidity and mortality. A smoking woman's baby's deficit in birth weight is about 5% on an average
Ectopic Pregnancy : Smoking increases the risk of ectopic pregnancy, in which the fertilized tissue is implanted outside the womb. Ectopic pregnancy puts the life of mother at risk and endangers subsequent fertility. The risk of ectopic pregnancy is double in woman who smokes when compared to nonsmoking woman
Premature rupture of membranes : Smoking women are at risk of premature rupture of membranes i.e. Abruptio placentae (separation of placenta from uterus) and Placental previa (the placenta is abnormally located, which may result in hemorrhaging during delivery. Due to premature rupture of membranes, the woman has a risk of carrying the baby for shorter time period than the normal gestational period
Placenta Previa: The risk of placenta Previa, a condition in which the placenta is prematurely separated from the uterus wall, is high in smoking women. This condition can result in stillbirth, or early infant death
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS): Babies of women who smoke have a high risk of SIDS and this risk is higher if the infant is exposed to postnatal smoking. Along with this, smoking women have high risks of stillbirths, neonatal deaths and prenatal mortality
All the above reproductive health risks are in addition to other health problems such as cancer, pulmonary disease, cardiovascular diseases etc. In view of the several health risks, it is very important for a woman to stop smoking. The good news is that when women stop smoking in the first trimester, the reproductive health risks are greatly reduced
The fact that pregnancy is a strong motivator for quitting smoking should encourage women to take up quit smoking programs. According to studies, women who quit smoking during pregnancy do not smoke even one year after delivery.
Quitting smoking not only ensures the baby's health, but it also improves the health and extends the life of women. Hence, women should put in their complete efforts to quit smoking for a better future and a healthy family.
To find out more about Amitabh's work and read articles written by him visit his Smoking website.
