Pregnancy

Smoking and Pregnancy

Being pregnant requires a lot of sacrifice from a mother to be. In the end it is worth it all when you have a healthy newborn to hold in your arms. The risks associated with a pregnancy are great. This includes your diet, including taking prenatal vitamins. Also on the list would be your lifestyle and extra curricular activities. Smoking and drinking can cause drastic birth defects for your unborn child. Smoking can cause complications during the pregnancy as well as in the newborn.

Pregnant women should avoid smoking at all costs. Miscarriages, stillbirths, and newborn deaths can all result from smoking during pregnancy. Low birth weight for a newborn can also happen if a new mother smokes. Cigarettes contain chemicals that are not only harmful to your unborn child, but you as well. They shave years off of your life at a fast rate. Second hand smoke is harmful to all who encounter it. Nicotine and carbon monoxide found in cigarettes are the two chemicals that have the greatest effect on an unborn child and their health.

Along with low birth weight, children who are born to smoking mothers can also be premature causing physical and mental development problems later in life. Smoking has been linked to slow fetal growth, which can lead to long term health problems. This includes medical conditions such as cerebral palsy, problems with learning, and mental retardation. The most severe case related to smoking while pregnant would be death. The placenta is what is heavily affected when a mother smokes. It can cause placenta previa, which is low-lying placenta that covers a part or the uterus' entire opening. Placental abruption can also occur. This is when the placenta peels away from the uterine wall before delivery. It will partially or completely peel away and both of these problems cause heavy bleeding and health concerns for both mother and child.

Smoking also affects fertility. Women who smoke have a harder time conceiving than those who do not. Kicking the habit greatly improves your chances. Quitting during the first trimester of pregnancy will improve a baby's growth and stopping in the third trimester even can help with growth. Young children do suffer the effects of cigarette smoke. Children born to smokers are jitterier when compared to those born to non-smokers. They also are more likely to suffer from sudden infant death syndrome or SIDS. It is important that your baby's health as well as your own is priority number one while you are pregnant. Cigarettes are not worth the risk of an unhealthy newborn.