How does smoking affect pregnancy (especially in the early stages)

Alcohol during pregnancy: safe or not?

A glass of wine or a puff on a cigarette is an integral part of the social life of most women. But when you're pregnant, everything you put into your body reaches your baby. Cigarette smoke and alcohol can harm your baby's health, so it's important that you change your habits.

Of course, ideally, you need to give up bad habits even before you start trying to get pregnant. The baby's brain and other organs begin to develop in the earliest stages of pregnancy, when the woman does not yet know that she is carrying a child. But even if you are already pregnant, you have the opportunity to significantly reduce the risk of developing pathologies in your child if you give up bad habits now.

Is it possible to smoke light cigarettes during pregnancy?

“Lite” or light cigarettes are another deception of the consumer by marketers. According to some data, the “ease” of the process of smoking them is determined not by the lower nicotine content, but by the higher density of the filter. In this case, the person inhales a standard amount of poison for conventional tobacco products. Even if this information is false, the pregnant woman will still receive carcinogens, benzene, resins and other toxic elements in full.

Therefore, light cigarettes during pregnancy are just as dangerous as heavy ones.

Drinks for two

When you lift the glass to your lips, make sure it is filled with grape juice and not wine. Why? When you drink alcoholic beverages, the alcohol passes through the placenta to the growing fetus. Because a developing child's body breaks down alcohol much more slowly than an adult's body, the fetus's blood alcohol level may rise much more than its mother's and will remain elevated for longer. Therefore, even a sip of alcohol, which seems absolutely harmless to you, can negatively affect the child. The damage can be severe, ranging from mental retardation to the development of heart defects.

According to the American National Academy of Sciences, 20% of women who drink alcohol continue to drink during pregnancy. One in 29 women who know they are pregnant report that they continue to drink alcohol regularly.

Pathologies of children born to smoking mothers

It is known that children born to addicts are more likely to suffer from genetic pathologies, congenital developmental anomalies and dysfunction of internal organs.

The most significant childhood diseases caused by maternal smoking during pregnancy are the following:

• Heart defects
• Dysraphism is a defect in the development of the neural tube.
• Mental retardation,
• Down syndrome,
• "Cleft lip" and "cleft palate"
• Pulmonary failure
• COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease),
• Strabismus,
• Myopia,
• Sensorineural hearing loss,
• dwarfism,
• Diabetes,
• Allergy,
• Bronchial asthma,
• Immunodeficiencies,
• Mental disorders.

Also, a mother’s bad habit can provoke blood cancer (leukemia) in the first years of a baby’s life.

What if it's just a sip or two?

Resist the urge to take a small sip, even for toast, because research has shown that sometimes even in very small doses, alcohol can cause permanent harm to your baby. A recent study from Wayne State University in Detroit found that women who drank just one drink per week during pregnancy were three times more likely than those who drank no alcohol to have children diagnosed with behavioral problems. , such as aggression and distracted attention. Children whose mothers drank more often, but in moderation - about a glass of wine a day - sometimes had more serious mental problems. A number of studies have found that children whose mothers drank alcohol during pregnancy, in addition to significant behavioral problems, also have an increased risk of learning problems and a risk of lower IQ.

But the list of potential health and development problems for such children does not end there. Pregnant women who frequently drink alcohol may have a baby with alcohol intoxication syndrome, which is one of the most common causes of mental retardation, central nervous system problems, abnormal facial features and cardiovascular diseases. Even if such a child has not been diagnosed with mental retardation, he may still have significant problems with learning, memory, attention, speech and hearing, as well as serious behavior problems.

Studies have also shown that women who drank alcohol about three times a week in the first trimester of pregnancy were twice as likely to have miscarriages.

Cigarettes and the female reproductive system

Cigarette products negatively affect the functioning of the ovaries: their metabolism is disrupted. The consequence of this may be weight loss or rapid weight gain. In addition, smoking reduces libido, disrupts the menstrual cycle, and can cause early menopause. Smoking can lead to infertility, since women who smoke are more likely to experience inflammatory processes in the pelvic organs.

If a girl abuses cigarettes, a hormonal revolution occurs in her body:

• the production of luteinizing hormone decreases;
• prolactin production decreases;
• the production of follicle-stimulating hormone decreases;
• the production of stress hormones increases;
• Oxytocin vasopressin is more actively produced, which causes the uterus to involuntarily contract and the blood vessels to contract in spasms.

The results of these dysfunctions are obvious: a woman’s ability to conceive decreases, and the eggs gradually die. In addition, premenstrual syndrome in such women is more pronounced: severe pain in the lower abdomen occurs, sudden mood changes, short temper, aggression, sweating, and hot flashes are observed. The extent of these manifestations depends on the number of cigarettes smoked.

Is caffeine harmful?

Wondering if drinking coffee can harm your baby? Experts differ on this issue. While some studies have shown that drinking caffeinated drinks increases the risk of miscarriage, other studies have shown that there is little or no risk of miscarriage from drinking caffeine if you drink no more than a cup of coffee per day.

While there is no definitive data on the dangers of consuming caffeine, the wisest decision would be to remove coffee drinks from your diet, or reduce their consumption to 300 ml per day. If you drink tea, be aware that some teas may also contain caffeine. Also keep in mind that other products may contain caffeine, such as cola or chocolate, so read labels carefully.

Caffeine content in products

How does smoking affect the fetus?

You know that smoking is harmful to your health and also negatively affects the development of your growing baby. In fact, smoking doubles the risk of having an underweight baby. A child who is underweight has an increased chance of developing health problems, and they die more often than children of normal weight. The good news is that even if you stop smoking mid-pregnancy, the risk of having an underweight baby will disappear. Even giving up this bad habit at a later stage will contribute to your child's weight gain.

The study, which was conducted at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, found that women who quit smoking at 32 weeks of pregnancy reduced their risk of having an underweight baby to the same level as non-smoking women.

Smokers also face an increased risk of ectopic pregnancy (when the fetus implants outside the uterus, usually in the fallopian tube) and placental complications. Placenta previa occurs twice as often in women who smoke than in women who do not smoke. Smokers also have an increased risk of amniotic fluid leakage before labor begins. If membrane rupture occurs before week 37, the baby may be born premature.

In addition, babies of women who smoke may face problems after birth. Experts say that children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy experience withdrawal symptoms (such as anxiety, sadness or difficulty calming down), as do children of mothers who used drugs. Smoking can also increase the risk of developing various birth defects, including cleft lips, cleft palate and club feet. But most frighteningly, scientists believe that children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are more likely to die from sudden infant death syndrome.

Smoking in the first month of pregnancy “out of ignorance”: what to do?

It happens that the news of conception comes closer to the end of the first month, and until 4-5 weeks the woman smokes quietly, without feeling any symptoms.

The algorithm for dealing with such incidents is simple:

• Urgent cessation of tobacco products and maximum “natural” detox, which does not contradict pregnancy (healthy and varied diet, taking detoxifying products, vitamin therapy, etc.).
• Contact your doctor with an honest report about your overall experience, the strength of your favorite cigarettes, and the number of cigarettes you regularly smoke per day. Usually the doctor gives additional personal recommendations, which should be strictly followed during the observation process.
• Complete reorganization of lifestyle to a healthy one.

In the case of such a sequence of actions, you will be able to minimize the damage that would be caused to the unborn baby by ignoring the recommendations.

Why can't you smoke after the baby is born?

It is also very important to refrain from this unhealthy habit after your baby is born. Babies who inhale cigarette smoke are more likely than other children to suffer from respiratory problems, asthma and ear infections. Babies of smoking mothers are more likely to be hospitalized with pneumonia than babies of non-smoking mothers. Of course, no one says that you will smoke on your child if you smoke, but the smell of smoke will remain on your hair, hands, on your clothes, and the child will inhale it upon contact with you.

How to give up bad habits

Before you drink another glass of wine or smoke a cigarette, think about your child. Perhaps, now the health of your baby is the strongest motivation for you. Try not to think about cigarettes and drinking, distract yourself from obsessive thoughts, and do something pleasant that requires full concentration. Avoid being in the company of people who smoke, or at least ask them to abstain from their habit in your presence. Challenge yourself: make an agreement with yourself that you will not smoke for at least a week. Probably, after this week, you yourself will begin to dislike the smell of smoke. Think about what is more important to you: a child or some kind of smoking stick - the choice is obvious.

December 1, 2020 Author
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