Smoking, Pregnancy, and Babies

Outlook for Mother and Baby

Most people know that smoking causes cancer and other major health problems. And smoking while you’re pregnant can cause serious problems, too. Your baby could be born too early, have a birth defect, or die from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Even being around cigarette smoke can cause health problems for you and your baby.¹

It's best to quit smoking before you get pregnant. But if you’re already pregnant, quitting can still help protect you and your baby from health problems. It's never too late to quit smoking.²

If you smoked and had a healthy pregnancy in the past, there's no guarantee that your next pregnancy will be healthy. When you smoke during pregnancy, you put your health and your baby's health at risk.³

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How Does Smoking Affect Fertility?

Smoking can cause fertility problems for you or your partner. Women who smoke have more trouble getting pregnant than women who don't smoke. In men, smoking can damage sperm and contribute to impotence (erectile dysfunction, or ED). Both problems can make it harder for a man to father a baby when he and his partner are ready.^{3, 4}

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How Can Smoking Harm You and Your Baby?

• Your baby may be born too small, even after a full-term pregnancy. Smoking slows your baby’s growth before birth.
• Your baby may be born too early (premature birth). Premature babies often have health problems.⁵
• Smoking can damage your baby's developing lungs and brain. The damage can last through childhood and into the teen years.⁴
• Smoking doubles your risk of abnormal bleeding during pregnancy and delivery. This can put both you and your baby in danger.⁵
• Smoking raises your baby’s risk for birth defects, including cleft lip, cleft palate, or both. A cleft is an opening in your baby's lip or in the roof of her mouth (palate). He or she can have trouble eating properly and is likely to need surgery. ^1,4
• Babies of moms who smoke during pregnancy—and babies exposed to cigarette smoke after birth—have a higher risk for SIDS.¹

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How Can a Premature Birth Harm Your Baby?

If you smoke during pregnancy, you are more likely to give birth too early. A baby born 3 weeks or more before your due date is premature.⁵ Babies born too early miss important growth that happens in the womb during the final weeks and months of pregnancy.⁶

The earlier a baby is born, the greater the chances for serious health problems or death. Premature babies can have:^6,7,8

• Low birth weight
• Feeding difficulties
• Breathing problems right away
• Breathing problems that last into childhood
• Cerebral palsy(brain damage that causes trouble with movement and muscle tone)
• Developmental delays (when a baby or child is behind in language, thinking, or movement skills)
• Problems with hearing or eyesight

Premature babies may need to stay at the hospital for days, weeks, or even months.⁵

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How Can Quitting Help You and Your Baby?

The best time to quit smoking is before you get pregnant, but quitting at any time during pregnancy can help your baby get a better start on life. Talk to your doctor about the best ways to quit while you're pregnant or trying to get pregnant.

When you stop smoking:¹

• Your baby gets more oxygen, even after just 1 day.
• Your baby will grow better.
• Your baby is less likely to be born too early.
• You'll have more energy and breathe more easily.
• You will be less likely to develop heart disease, stroke, lung cancer, lung disease, and other smoking-related diseases.

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Support for Quitting During Pregnancy

Most pregnant women who smoke want to quit, but quitting isn't always easier during pregnancy. What's more, if you're pregnant and still smoking, you may feel ashamed and alone.

The right kind of support can help a pregnant woman to get through the unique challenges of quitting during this phase of life. Special guidance is available for you and for the people around you. These resources include:

• Feelings, Partners, and Friends
• Quitting With Help From Friends
• 12 Ways to Help Her Quit Smoking
• Pregnancy, Motherhood, and Smoking

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Stay Smokefree for a Healthy Child

Staying smokefree is important. Tobacco smoke contains a deadly mix of more than 7,000 chemicals.⁹ When your child is not exposed to smoke, you can expect him or her to have:¹⁰

• Fewer coughs and chest colds
• A lower risk for bronchitis or pneumonia (lung problems)
• Fewer ear infections
• Fewer asthma attacks and wheezing problems

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References

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tobacco Use and Pregnancy [last updated 2014 Jan 28; accessed 2014 Jul 18].
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pregnant? Don't Smoke! [last updated 2014 Jan 30; accessed 2014 Jul 18].
3. National Cancer Institute. 4 Reasons Why Quitting Matters When You're Pregnant [accessed 2014 Jul 18].
4. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Let's Make the Next Generation Tobacco-Free: Your Guide to the 50th Anniversary Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health. [PDF - 795KB] Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2014 [accessed 2014 Jul 18].
5. National Cancer Institute. Smoking, Labor, & Delivery: It's Complicated [accessed 2014 Jul 18].
6. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preterm Birth [last updated 2013 Dec 9; accessed 2014 Jul 18].
7. Been JV, Lugtenberg MJ, Smets E, van Schayck CP, Kramer BW, Mommers M, Sheikh A. Preterm Birth and Childhood Wheezing Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PLOS Medicine 2014 Jan 28. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1001596 [accessed 2014 Jul 18].
8. Harju M, Keski-Nisula L, Georgiadis L, Räisänen S, Gissler M, Heinonen S. The Burden of Childhood Asthma and Late Preterm and Early Term Births. The Journal of Pediatrics 2014;164(2):295–9 [accessed 2014 Jul 18].
9. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A Report of the Surgeon General. How Tobacco Smoke Causes Disease: What It Means to You. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2010 [accessed 2014 Jul 18].
10. National Cancer Institute. Grow, Baby, Grow [accessed 2014 Jul 18].