Today, May 31, World No Tobacco Day is celebrated, and therefore from "Babies and More" we want to put our little grain of sand to raise awareness about the importance of a pregnancy and childhood without smoke.
And unfortunately, tobacco smoke affects 700 million children in the world, half of the child population, so this fact becomes a serious public health problem that everyone should be aware of.
Risks of smoking during pregnancy
Smoking during pregnancy involves several health risks, both for the mother and the baby. But despite knowing the serious problems involved, according to the data presented at the conference "Gynecology and Obstetrics in Smoking", 25 percent of women of childbearing age smoke, and more than half of them continue to do so during pregnancy.
On a day like today, we want to review the health risks of the baby that tobacco poses during pregnancy:
- It affects your developing arteries, which predisposes you to have more congenital heart problems and makes you more prone to cardiovascular disease, including stroke.
And is that tobacco is behind a large number of heart diseases and cardiovascular diseases, that is why this year the WHO has decided to focus on this specific problem, through the slogan "World No Tobacco Day 2018: Tobacco and heart disease".
Low weight at birth and increased risk of being born prematurely.
Higher frequency of pulmonary respiratory infections during the first two years of life and increased risk of asthma.
Increased probability of sudden infant death syndrome.
Tobacco during pregnancy also affects the fertility of the baby: there are studies that have evaluated the impact of tobacco on the fertility of children and indicate that in the case of children, there is a reduction in sperm concentration between 20 and 40%, while in regard to girls' fertility, will also be affected, since they will have limited ovarian function.
More risk of having future behavior problems such as hyperactivity and attention and concentration problems.
Other associated problems: increased risk of childhood cancer, increased likelihood of strabismus and cleft lip.
For the smoking mother, tobacco also has important health risks and apart from the best known (such as cardiovascular disease, cancer and other problems) are also added:
Ectopic pregnancy
Premature rupture of membranes
Placental complications
Preterm Birth
Spontaneous abortion
Gestational diabetes
In addition, tobacco affects the fertility of both men and women, so before trying to get pregnant it is advisable to abandon this harmful habit.
Remember also that even if you are not a smoker it is important that during pregnancy nobody smokes around you, because the fact of becoming Passive smoker also affects your health and that of your child.
Risks of smoking in front of babies and children
According to the data collected at the "Gynecology and Obstetrics in Smoking" conference, 70 percent of women who quit smoking during pregnancy return to smoking after childbirth.
We must not forget that children of smoking parents they become passive smokers and this also has a negative impact on them. Although it is not necessary to smoke in the presence of a child so that their health is affected, because what is known as "third-hand smoke" (the toxins that persist in the environment once the cigarette has been extinguished) also constitutes for them an invisible threat.
As we have seen above, passive tobacco smoke predisposes the baby to a increased risk of sudden infant death.
Passive smoking children are more prone to infections, such as meningococcal infection, asthma, pneumonia, moderate impairment of lung function, otitis media, bronchiolitis, eye and respiratory tract irritation.
They are more prone to obesity and diabetes.
They are at greater risk of serious heart disease.
Tips to quit smoking
On the Internet we can find multiple resources that help us to become aware of the risks that tobacco has for our health and that of our children, and offer guidelines to be able to abandon this harmful habit.
If you or your partner are smokers, It is best to quit tobacco before considering having a baby, but if this were not possible, pregnancy should be the time to leave. Go to your doctor for help and advice, according to experts, with specific material for pregnant women and a guide by trained professionals, the success rates are higher.
Remember also that the Spanish Association Against Cancer is made available to people who want to quit in the different Spanish provinces. Whatever your country of residence, consult nearby associations that deal with this issue, as they have programs to help quit tobacco
We leave you some tips that can be useful when quitting tobacco:
Increase the practice of physical exercise, including walking.
Take deep breaths.
Surround yourself with people who do not smoke or ask your friends / family smokers not to do it in front of you.
Do activities that distract your attention, such as gardening, music or reading.
Change the routines that used to take you to smoke, such as the desktop. Instead, when you finish eating, brush your teeth and go for a walk.
In Babies and More Smoking, Tobacco and Children
