Harms of Smoking During Pregnancy and Effects on the Baby
Does Smoking Harm the Baby?
The group most affected by smoking, with short-term effects, are pregnant women. We notice the harms of smoking the most and the quickest during pregnancy. Smoking during pregnancy leads to unavoidable problems. The countless poisonous chemicals in cigarettes, such as tar and arsenic, harm the expectant mother and the baby. While the amount of smoking is important regarding the harm to the baby, the most crucial point to remember is that even a single cigarette can potentially harm the baby. Early in pregnancy, when the baby is about to implant, the baby might not implant in the uterus due to the damage smoking can cause to the uterine lining. Thus, smoking's harms can manifest even at the earliest stage. After the baby implants and during the early period, marked by a missed period, the risk of miscarriage for mothers who smoke is significantly higher compared to those who do not. The amount smoked during these stages is also important. In later stages of pregnancy, this can lead to disadvantages such as the baby being born prematurely and the expectant mother needing a Cesarean section instead of a natural birth. After the baby is born, it is also observed that mothers who smoke may directly suffer from asthma or various allergic reactions due to their smoking habits.
Harms of Smoking to the Mother
Firstly, one of the biggest harms of smoking is the reduction in fertility. Women who smoke are less likely to conceive than those who do not. Although the same applies to men who smoke, the adverse effects of smoking are significantly greater for women in terms of sperm count and motility. This further weakens the expectant mother's chances of conceiving. When we smoke, our respiratory and cardiovascular systems have to work harder than normal. While we already experience negative effects like shortness of breath, palpitations, or fatigue during strenuous activities in normal life, we feel these effects more intensely during pregnancy. This leads to a difficult pregnancy. Consequently, when it's time for delivery, it becomes difficult for mothers who smoke to have a natural birth. To explain why, a properly functioning respiratory system is necessary for a natural birth, as a full set of lungs is required for effective pushing. Since this is not very possible for expectant mothers who smoke, Cesarean sections are generally preferred. In the stages after the baby's birth, there are also problems with the milk of mothers who smoke. The milk of a mother who smokes is not only lower in quantity but also lower in quality compared to the milk of a mother who does not smoke.
