July 16, 2010
Smoking and pregnancy
Image by Don Regachuelo
The issue of smoking has been brought to the forefront in our country because our new President has admitted he still cannot stop smoking. Maybe because he is still a bachelor and there is no lady nor child around to make him want to quit. In my personal opinion, smoking cessation is the smoker's own choice and no amount of cajoling from other people will make a man want to quit. The decision is his and his alone. How about if it is the woman who does the smoking? How about if that woman is pregnant?
A woman has to understand that anything she takes in will eventually be shared with her unborn child. The baby has no other source of oxygen and nutrients than the mother. Food is processed by the mother's gastrointestinal system but eventually reaches the baby for its nutrition. Oxygen in the air is sucked in through the mother's nose and eventually reaches her baby carried by her blood. This is the same with smoking. Nicotine and other noxious materials are carried through the mother's blood and reaches the baby through the umbilical cord.
It is understandable that a pregnant woman who smokes can indeed affect the growing baby inside her, but do you know that smoking even before or after pregnancy affects your baby as well?
Smoking before pregnancy
It is interesting to note that smoking may make you less fertile compared to someone who doesn't smoke. They have about 30 per cent chance of being infertile (www.cdc.gov/tobacco) or unable to bear children. They have a higher risk of developing ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy outside the womb), a very serious condition that can lead to death if not recognized and treated early.
Smoking during pregnancy
Let me emphasize that there is no maximum allowable sticks of cigarettes per day. Light smoking or heavy smoking both affect the unborn child. There are effects while the baby is still inside the womb (in utero) and effects that are seen after the baby is born.
Effects to the baby in utero are:
- small or low birth weight due to poor delivery of oxygen & nutrition from compromised blood vessels
- miscarriage which may be due to decreased oxygen & nutrition from the mother or as an effect of the dangerous gases passed on to the developing baby like nicotine, carbon monoxide etc. leading to a damaged fetus
- fetal death in utero or shortly after birth
- prematurity
- placental complications like placenta previa and abruptio placenta, both serious conditions which may lead to death of the baby and the mother due to massive blood loss
Effects to the baby after birth:
- prone to develop lung problems
- die of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
- growth retardation
- intellectual problems
- Studies have shown that children born to mothers who smoke while pregnant are more likely to develop Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (SOURCE: Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal, Vol. 20:183-187, 1975) or ADHD, perform poorer in school being between three and five months behind in reading, mathematics, and general ability (SOURCE: British Medical Journal, 4:573-575, 1973)
- behavioral problems
- Women who smoked at least a pack a day during pregnancy had children with extreme behavior problems - such as anxiety, conflict with others, or disobedience. (SOURCE: Associated Press - Reported in Florida Today, September 4, 1992)
Smoking after pregnancy
Breastfeeding is the best source of nutrition for the baby. However, for a woman who smokes, the nicotine & other chemicals from her cigarette are carried through her bloodstream to her breast milk and ultimately to her baby.
A smoking mother and father releases harmful substances, like tar, carbon monoxide, nicotine, to the air from the smoke that they blow off as well as from the cigarette burning at the edge. This leads to secondhand smoke, also called passive smoke or environmental tobacco smoke.
Effects on the child:
- reduced lung capacity therefore a higher risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
- increased risk of developing lung cancer, heart disease, emphysema, allergies, asthma, and other health problems
- premature death and disease
- decreased ability to process auditory information leading to decreased academic performance in school (SOURCE: Neurotoxicology and Teratology, Vol. 16(3), 1994)
- more likely to suffer from asthma and other respiratory symptoms (coughs) & infections, middle ear infections and slowed lung growth
Smoking and You
The most well known effect of smoking is lung cancer. However, there are other effects which may not be as popular but has a significant effect on a person's health and well-being. To name a few:
- lung diseases like bronchitis, emphysema & lead to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which, in severe form, looks & feels like a drowning person gasping for breath
- heart disease and diseases of the blood vessels (cardiovascular disease)
- damage the nerve cells and causes changes in your brain
- reduces the oxygen content of your blood making your heart work harder and beat faster to make up for this reduced oxygen amount
- increases the risk of cancers of other organs like mouth (oral), voicebox (larynx), windpipe (traches), pancreas, bladder, kidney and cervix
- can aggravate asthma
- irritates the eyes
- stains your teeth, fingernails, clothes
- cosmetic effects like loss of skin tone and the development of wrinkles
It is never too late to stop smoking for the sake of your baby, your loved ones, your career but more importantly, for yourself.
This article written with information gathered from books and websites like:
If you have questions for Dr. Malu, you can email her at feedback@herword.com.
Dr. Ma. Luisa V. Torralba-Mangubat is a Fellow of the Philippine Obstetrical & Gynecological Society, Philippine College of Surgeons and International College of Surgeons. In addition to this, she is also a Fellow in Aesthetic & Medicine Surgery of the Philippine Academy of Medical Specialists and a member of the Philippine Academy of Non-Surgical Aesthetics. For personal consultations, her clinic hours are as follows:
Asian Hospital and Medical Center, Room 722
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.
Tel. (632) 771-9340
Medical Center Manila, Room 337
Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Tel. (632) 528-1173
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