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| Women and
Tobacco |
| Smoking
ages women prematurely. Smoking affects
the skin (due to vasoconstriction induced
by nicotine), causing reduction in blood
circulation and oxygen supply and thus favouring
wrinkling and premature aging of the skin.
Smoke particles also adhere to the skin,
producing a bad odour blocking the pores.
Hair becomes fragile because of smoke deposits
and reduced irrigation of the scalp. Conjunctivitis
is more likely to develop because of smoke-induced
eye irritation. Teeth can become discoloured
due to nicotine and tar deposits. Smoking
also increases the risk of gum decay. Bad
breath is the most obvious effect. The voice
may also be affected.
Women who smoke may have earlier menopause
by one or two years compared to non-smokers.
They have more facial wrinkles and may have
grey hair earlier. Smoking may also increase
the risk for osteoporosis, a major cause
for fractures in postmenopausal women. |
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| Smoking
and contraception |
| Smoking
interferes with the choice of contraceptive
methods because of the effects of nicotine
on estrogen. Women who take estrogen pills
have a higher risk of contracting cardiovascular
diseases if they smoke. The combined risk
is much higher than the separate risks attached
to either the pill or to smoking alone,
and the risk increases with age.
Among women using oral contraceptives, the
risk of a heart attack, stroke, or blood
clot in the legs' veins is much greater
for smokers than non-smokers. The risk increase
after 40 years of age, especially when the
blood pressure or cholesterol levels is
above normal. |
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| Smoking
and pregnancy |
| Not only
does tobacco seriously damage maternal health,
it also affects the health of their babies.
Women who smoke have more difficulty becoming
pregnant than non-smokers. They are also
more prone to spontaneous abortion. Babies
born to smoking mothers have lower survival
rates, and those who survive are more likely
to be sickly. Exposure to smoke also increases
the risk of respiratory diseases in babies
and small children.
When a pregnant woman smokes, her unborn
child smokes with her. She passes carbon
monoxide and nicotine to the bloodstream
of the fetus, lessening the supply of oxygen
and accelerating its heart beat. In addition,
her newborn child is likely to be underweight
by an average of 300 grams.
Nicotine is transmitted in the milk of
a lactating mother to her infant. The risk
of developing bronchitis or pneumonia during
the first year of life is doubled if the
parents smoke. The risk of otitis (inflammation
of the ear) is also increased in the children
who live with smokers compared to those
who do not. |
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| How does
smoking affect the baby? |
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a. |
Risk of spontaneous
miscarriage in early pregnancy is 2
times higher compared to the non-smokers.
This may result partly from an increased
number of abnormal embryos, with which
smoking is associated. |
| b. |
Risk of preterm
labour and prematurity of baby. |
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c. |
Risk of birth defects.
Most studies show a relatively higher
risk for babies of smoking mothers. |
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d. |
Increased risk of
abruptio placentae. This is a serious
condition where the placenta separates
itself prematurely from the uterus before
birth, causing abdominal pain and bleeding
from the vagina. This condition can
lead to danger and even death for both
mother and child. |
| e. |
Delayed physical
and intellectual development in the
child. |
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f. |
Adverse effects
on maternal health e.g. an increased
risk of cancer; gut, heart and lung
diseases. |
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g. |
Possible risk for
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). |
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| How does
low birth weight affect the baby? |
| Infants
of smoking mothers weigh on average 300
grams less than those of non-smoking mothers.
Low birth weight in babies is not due only
to prematurity but also to intrauterine
growth retardation (poor growth of the baby
in the womb).
A growth-retarded baby is one who is not
growing well in the mother's womb because
of the lack of nutrients and oxygen. Such
a baby faces an increased risk of fetal
death in the womb and may require an early
or emergency delivery by induction or caesarean
section.
The baby also has a higher chance of dying
in the early period after birth compared
to a normal, healthy baby.
Other problems which a growth-retarded
or immature baby may suffer from include
low blood sugar, low temperature and aspirating
meconium in the womb or when it is born,
and respiratory difficulties from immature
lungs. |
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| How does
smoking affect the baby's growth in the womb? |
| Smoking reduces
the transfer of oxygen and nutrients to the
baby while it is in the womb. Low birth weight,
one of the effects of smoking, may be due
to the following: |
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a. |
Nicotine found in
tobacco smoke constricts and reduces
the placental bed blood vessel flow. |
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b. |
Carbon monoxide,
also found in tobacco smoke, binds preferentially
to fetal haemoglobin excluding oxygen.
The higher level of carboxyhaemoglobin
(a combination of carbon monoxide and
haemoglobin) reduces oxygen supply to
fetal tissues. |
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c. |
The toxic effect
of smoking damages the placenta villi
and barrier (the attachment lining between
the placenta and the womb), thus reducing
the transfer of amino acids and other
nutrients to the fetus. |
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| How harmful
is secondary or passive smoking? |
| The effects
of passive smoking are difficult to quantify.
If a non-smoking woman lives in the atmosphere
of her husband's cigarettes smoke, the fetus
could receive an indirect effect of the smoke
through the mother, although the concentration
may be lower than from direct smoking. Thus,
it is best for the husband to refrain from
smoking in the mother's presence, or to quit
the habit. The mother is also advised to keep
out of smoke-filled areas. |
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| In the
case if a mother who cannot give up smoking
totally, how many would be permissible? |
| There is a
graduated fetal response to maternal inhaled
smoke. That is, the more cigarettes the mother
smokes, the more risks for the fetus. There
is no cut off point where smoking can be said
to not affect the unborn baby. The best advice
is not to smoke at all during pregnancy. |
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