Parent and Baby

In addition to being responsible for about 90% of lung cancer in women, smoking can harm a woman’s reproductive health. It is widely known that smoking while taking oral contraceptives after age 35 can increase a woman’s risk of having a heart attack, a stroke or blood clots. This is just the tip of the iceberg. The following are other reproductive health risks associated with smoking.

1. Fertility problems
   Women who smoke tends to have shorter cycles, their periods are closer together and they may have a more difficult time getting pregnant. Women who undergo in vitro fertilization have more trouble with implantation if they smoke. The risks for miscarriages are also high in women who are smokers.
2. Pregnancy- related complications
   Women who smoke during pregnancy have an increased risk of preterm delivery and of having a low-birth weight baby. Children who are born to mothers who smoke before and after pregnancy are at an increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome, upper respiratory infections, ear infections, allergies and asthma.
3. Cervical cancer
   Smoking increases the risk of cervical cancer because the chemicals from cigarettes impair the cervix’s cellular repair system, making it harder for the body to fight off the HPV infection which is the leading cause of cervical cancer.
4. Incontinence
   Nicotine decreases the thickness and elasticity of the skin and the same goes for connective tissues in the pelvic floor. In addition, the smoker’s chronic cough may weaken the pelvic floor muscles.
5. Earlier menopause
   Women who smoke have earlier menopause by an average of two years. This could be because the chemicals in cigarettes may be toxic to a woman’s eggs or because smokers use up their eggs faster due to shorter cycles. it could be because smoking heavily is associated with lower estrogen levels.

The only solution is to kick the habit and stay cigarette-free. Some women fear gaining weight if they quit smoking. You can keep those extra pounds off if you combine quitting with an exercise program. Not only you will feel better, you will be lowering your risk for all those problems as well as heart disease, lung cancer and other life-threatening conditions.