SMOKING AND INFERTILITY

Smoking has been shown to increase infertility and we recommend that all patients stop (including the male). Smoking in women has been shown definitely to cause:

–Decrease in estrogen production

–Acceleration of egg depletion resulting in earlier menopause

–Delay in conception

–Women who smoke cigarettes were three times more likely to experience longer than a year delay in conception

–Increase risk of miscarriages

–Increase abnormalities in sperm motility and shape

–Three fold increase risk of ectopic pregnancy

–Women who are undergoing In vitro fertilization and smoke have a decrease in the eggs available for fertilization and decrease in pregnancy rate.

–Smoking decreases the weight of newborn and leads to premature birth.

–There is an increase incidence of sudden infant death syndrome in smoking households.

–Women should quit smoking at least two months prior to attempting to conceive.