The influence of tobacco on embryonic development. What are they like, children of smokers? Smoking before pregnancy

During 9 months of pregnancy, a human child must grow and evolve from a 2-cell embryo into a highly developed, extremely complex organism. During the growth of which thousands of different reactions occur and any interference in this process can be fatal. Therefore, today we will consider in as much detail as possible the effect of smoking on fetal development.

The effect of smoking on the development of the body

Despite numerous “Ministry of Health warnings,” approximately 30% of women who smoke are unable to give up their addiction even while pregnant. But smoking is not the only reason oxygen starvation embryo, but also increases the risk of developing the syndrome sudden death child more than 2.5 times.

And even in cases where, at first glance, nothing bad happens to the baby, he will lag behind mentally and physical development from their peers, and the risk of developing colds, diseases respiratory tract, cardiovascular and other systems are 4-5 times higher.

Those pregnant women who cannot give up cigarettes, even for the sake of the health of the unborn child, prefer to believe such popular myths about smoking as: the impermeability of the placenta to nicotine and other harmful substances, and also that a few cigarettes will not harm the baby. But, in fact, nicotine and other substances enter the child’s body and interfere normal development placenta.

Effect of nicotine

Nicotine is a substance that easily penetrates the blood-brain barrier and the placenta. Getting into big circle blood circulation, along with the blood flow it penetrates into circulatory system fetus, causing sharp violation of all processes occurring at this moment.

And babies born “healthy” are 2 times more likely to suffer from various diseases respiratory organs, of cardio-vascular system And digestive tract. Most children born to mothers who smoke have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and behavior problems.

The effect of cigarettes and nicotine on the development of the fetus can only be compared with the slow-acting poison that parents poison their unborn baby every day.

Moreover, passive smoking, when a pregnant woman is “fumigated” by her future father or other relatives, can also have an extremely negative impact on the child’s health. In such cases, there is less risk of miscarriage or development birth defects, but not diseases internal organs or general developmental delay.

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Does smoking affect pregnancy? The answer to this question has long been known - of course, yes. And only negatively. Both the body of the pregnant woman herself and the embryo suffer early stages development, both the fetus and the already born child. The consequences of smoking during pregnancy do not always appear immediately, but the likelihood of any deviations and occurrence serious illnesses The child's is very large. It is very sad that children have to pay for the bad habits of their parents with their own health.

It is extremely undesirable to smoke not only constantly, but also from time to time, and also to become a passive smoker.

How does smoking affect future pregnancies?

Statistics show that more than 20% of women in Russia smoke. Moreover, the largest number of smokers are young women under thirty years of age, respectively, who are of fertile age. And since not everyone plans their pregnancy in advance, very often in the first, very important days intrauterine development, the embryo is susceptible to negative influence smoking.

Moreover, in case smoking parents, conception itself is at risk. There are statistics showing that smokers are diagnosed with infertility one and a half times more often. Therefore, when asking the question whether smoking has a strong effect on pregnancy and its likelihood in general, doctors answer that it does. And the likelihood of its occurrence can significantly reduce and negatively affect the development of the embryo.

Quantity smoking men even more, and many of them are potential future fathers living with their partners. It is important to know that passive smoking is no better and does no less harm. And in male smokers, sperm quality suffers greatly due to the effects of nicotine, which also does not contribute to rapid fertilization.

You need to quit smoking at least six months before the planned pregnancy - in this case, the probability of its occurrence, as a rule, becomes the same as for non-smokers.

IMPORTANT: Smoking can significantly reduce your chances of getting pregnant and even lead to infertility.

How does smoking affect early pregnancy?

On early stages During pregnancy, the embryo develops rapidly - cells are actively dividing, laying the foundation for all organs and systems of the future baby. Scientists have discovered that smoking can cause mutations in a child's DNA.

Moreover, it was revealed that those areas that are responsible for pathologies and diseases of the nervous system and lungs were changed; abnormal development of the nasopharynx - “cleft lip” and “cleft palate”; the likelihood of developing cancer.

Many studies have been conducted on the effects of smoking on pregnancy. The results are not encouraging. In the early stages, the probability of miscarriage is very high, and in women who smoke it increases many times over. In addition, the placenta, which is just beginning to develop, can change its structure, its volume and shape are significantly reduced, and the blood flow in it is disrupted.

Early pregnancy loss is more common in women who smoke. There are also statistics regarding the birth of children with heart defects. Smoking, among others, is an unfavorable factor contributing to the occurrence of this disorder.

The effect of smoking during pregnancy can be understood by looking at the same composition of cigarette smoke. There is nothing in it that would be good for an unborn child, but it is extremely hazardous substances at least two - nicotine and carbon monoxide. Not to mention those components that can cause cancer. Nicotine can cause a lack of oxygen, narrowing blood vessels, including the placenta.

IMPORTANT: Smoking in early pregnancy can lead to serious violations in development and many pathologies, including the central nervous system.

How does smoking affect the fetus during pregnancy?

One of the biggest dangers that awaits an unborn baby of a smoker is oxygen starvation. Oxygen, which is transferred to the baby through the umbilical cord and placenta, can be sorely lacking if the mother smokes. The fetus literally suffocates, which can even lead to miscarriage or seriously affect the health of the newborn. Chronic lack of oxygen causes irreversible changes leading to significant developmental disorders.

There are studies by American scientists regarding how smoking affects the 15th week of pregnancy. Interestingly, this period is a kind of guideline - if a woman does not quit smoking before this moment, her risk of giving birth prematurely increases several times. And it is far from a fact that in this case the child will survive, since premature babies born no earlier than 22 weeks are nursed, and even then not all of these attempts are successful. And even if the child is born full-term, it is not uncommon for smokers to have children with reduced weight , often suffering from childhood cerebral palsy and developmental delay.

If we talk about more later, for example, about the effect of smoking at 32 weeks of pregnancy, the forecasts here are not encouraging. One of the real dangers is premature aging placenta.

We must not forget that children of mothers who smoke during pregnancy may experience serious problems and in the future. For example, according to research by specialists from the UK, such children are more likely to suffer from obesity and have behavioral problems. And this is far from the worst thing. The effects of nicotine on the fetus are irreversible - it changes the way it works nerve cells, and this leads to the development of attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity disorder, and chronic tic disorders (including Tourette's syndrome) in children.

Need to know: Research by Columbia University scientists has shown that maternal smoking increases the risk of schizophrenia in the child.

IMPORTANT: smoking can cause miscarriage, premature birth and increases the likelihood of having an underweight baby.

How does smoking affect the body during pregnancy?

In addition to the fact that smoking poisons the unborn baby, it also causes significant damage to the health of the expectant mother. Harmful substances contained in cigarette smoke enter the body, are absorbed into the blood and disrupt the functioning of blood vessels, heart, lungs and immune system.

Smoking has negative impact both men and women, but female body this influence is especially strong. Scientists suggest that the mucous membrane of the uterus contains certain substances that “attract” nicotine and a product of its processing by the liver - cotinine. These poisons accumulate there, significantly increasing the likelihood of cervical cancer.

Quite a lot of information has been collected about the effects of alcohol and smoking on pregnancy. All of them indicate that this influence is extremely negative. For women, and especially those planning to have children, it is better not to start smoking, or to get rid of this harmful habit long before pregnancy. Many serious pathologies and health problems, as well as tragedies associated with the death of babies, could be avoided if mothers thought more about their own health and the health of their unborn children.

No mother wants a future for her child that is full of illnesses and related problems. Meanwhile, there are studies on whether smoking during pregnancy influences the child to become a heavy smoker in the future. And they confirm this.

IMPORTANT: A woman needs to quit smoking and avoid places where smokers gather long before her planned pregnancy in order to preserve both her health and the health of her unborn baby.

If no reasonable arguments, including fear for the child, can force a woman to give up smoking, and also convey to others what harm they cause to the unborn baby, forcing the pregnant woman to breathe smoke, then it makes sense to contact a qualified specialist.

Any woman knows well that this bad habit will sooner or later negatively affect her health. And when she finds herself in an “interesting” situation, her responsibility is double, and the harm of smoking only increases. And, nevertheless, many women believe that they have a strong body, and a few cigarettes a day cannot significantly worsen the condition of her and the unborn baby. Some naively believe that the harm of one cigarette can be compensated for by a glass of milk. They are fundamentally mistaken. So, what do expectant mothers need to know about the compatibility of pregnancy and bad habits?

About the dangers of smoking for a pregnant woman

No doctor will tell a woman that it is okay to smoke a little during pregnancy. No one would recommend it to an expectant mother safe dose, will not name one cigarette a day, even if she drinks milk, eats berries, honey and fruits.

The harm of tobacco addiction during the period of bearing a baby is the disruption of her heart, chronic vasoconstriction, which causes jumps blood pressure and decreased blood flow to the heart. Nicotine in any dose reduces the oxygen saturation of blood cells.

In the early stages, namely up to 12 weeks, women who smoke increase the risk of spontaneous abortion and uterine bleeding. If the body is prone to toxicosis, then its manifestations will be more pronounced and stronger.

If we talk about later stages, addiction increases the risk of premature birth. And at the same time, child mortality, according to statistics, is up to 30%.

The formation of the placenta in expectant mothers who smoke occurs with disturbances. Very often they experience placenta previa. This is what obstetricians call the condition when the baby's place is located in lower section of the uterus, blocks the internal os partially or completely, which in the later stages threatens premature and pathological birth. Presentation is always a huge risk of premature birth, the birth of a premature baby. It is also possible for this category of women to experience placental rejection. This is a condition that is dangerous both for the unborn baby and for his mother.

In addition to all of the above, smoking during pregnancy leads to rupture amniotic sac long before his birth. And this is also a threat to both lives. So it’s not in vain that gynecologists emphasize that you need to prepare for pregnancy, and at the planning stage, first of all, get rid of bad habits.

About the dangers of mother smoking for her unborn baby

Experts explain that poor circulation in the mother’s body leads to hypoxia in the fetus. It lacks oxygen for healthy development. And this forms intrauterine defects, in particular, the brain and internal organs. Children born to smoking mothers are weak and underdeveloped.

Nicotine and decay products of tobacco smoke disrupt the formation of the nervous system of the unborn child. This in the future manifests itself as mental defects. After birth, the baby will often cry, be capricious, and refuse food. His sleep will be light, intermittent, and short-lived. Further, as you grow older, uncontrollable and sudden attacks aggression.

One of the most common ailments in children born to smoking mothers is heart defects.

The danger of smoking for children also lies in the fact that in the process of their socialization they will not adapt well to the team kindergarten and schools. At first educational activities Such first-graders noticeably lag behind their peers in academic performance, speed of memorization of educational material, and understanding of it. Their memory is weak, their ability to analyze is low, and their speech develops much more slowly. In such children, manifestations are less frequent and sparse. Creative skills, creative thinking, and all because the brain at one time did not receive enough oxygen and nutrients due to mom's fault. If she and during breastfeeding continued to smoke, then all of the above only intensifies and manifests itself more clearly in the child.

So, having learned about pregnancy and wanting to have healthy baby, a woman must make every effort to say goodbye to a bad habit. And you don’t need to listen to those who claim that quitting smoking in an “interesting” situation is dangerous.

Today, smoking can be compared to an epidemic that has engulfed most of the world's population. Expectant mothers are increasingly agreeing to pick up a cigarette, causing harm to themselves and their child. In order for children to be born healthy, it is better for girls not to get used to nicotine, otherwise the consequences can be disastrous.

Why do women smoke?

The task of any mother is to reproduce healthy offspring, who will be able to continue the family line in the future. Attitudes towards women have always been different. In some cultures, she symbolized the family hearth and was only involved in housework, while in others she carried out various activities on a par with men. Today the female population is self-sufficient young ladies who first think about a career and only then about starting a family. Such girls know very well how smoking affects pregnancy, but often make no attempt to get rid of this bad habit. Image strong woman with a cup of coffee and a thin cigarette in hand was established in the last century and remains relevant to this day. But, unfortunately, such beauties more often become good writers and actresses than mothers.

Today, a stylish blonde with a pink lighter impresses men, but everyone knows that the stronger sex only has fun with the beautiful ones and marries the healthy ones. Oncological diseases- this is just one of the consequences that await a smoker. Infertility or the birth of a handicapped child - even this factor does not stop women who cannot live a day without a cigarette. Previously, smoking was considered an exclusively male activity, but over time, girls also became addicted to it. Feminists, who wanted to appear strong and independent in the eyes of the public, strove for masculine imitation and in every possible way proved this similarity with their behavior. According to statistics, only 35% of women can overcome their addiction to tobacco, the remaining 65% are unable to do so. psychological level, even understanding the harmful effects of smoking on pregnancy. The cigarette symbolizes the so-called forbidden fruit, and every year more and more people want to try it. There is another reason why women start smoking - temporary relaxation and stress relief. If in childhood boys and girls were soothed by a pacifier, in adult life a cigarette serves as such an antidepressant. It is curious that a woman can easily go on a diet, give up her favorite chocolate or meat, but it is much more difficult for her to quit tobacco, and in some cases it is even impossible.

All about passive smoking

Canadian scientists have found that children living in the same home with parents who use tobacco can become aggressive and uncontrollable, and in the worst case, risk incurable diseases. mental disorders. Tobacco is especially harmful for children in the first years of life. A smoking mother provokes a lot of physiological abnormalities in them in the first months of pregnancy. But even if a woman gives up cigarettes during pregnancy and then takes them up again, the child still runs the risk of defective development. The study found that children under the age of ten, being in a smoky room, soon become more irritable. Everyone knows about the dangers of smoking, but not everyone decides to fight this habit and prefer to treat their child after it begins to cause concern.

Tobacco smoke can enter a baby's lungs and cause irreparable consequences. And then the harm of smoking will become obvious. Nicotine has a very detrimental effect on the human body. You can completely lose your hearing, develop leukemia and diseases Bladder. Second-hand smoke has almost as strong an effect because there is nothing to stop the smoke from entering your lungs. If you want to grow healthy child, make sure that he is not surrounded by people who use tobacco, and when going out onto especially polluted city streets, provide yourself and your baby with a cotton face mask.

What are they like, children of smokers?

Women are responsible for those they give birth to. But why doesn’t knowledge about the dangers of nicotine stop expectant mothers? Do they really wish their child harm? Over time, children of smoking parents develop a desire to try the first cigarette, followed by the second, the tenth, the thousandth. Oxygen starvation, which occurs in a child in the womb, can cause the development of autism.

Children of smokers, whose photos can be terrifying, are more likely to be born with a cleft lip, clubfoot, or several problems at the same time. From the first years of life, the baby may begin to show signs diabetes mellitus or obesity, and ignorant mothers will complain about poor quality baby food, while nicotine is to blame.

How does smoking affect pregnancy: doctors' view

Many expectant mothers are sure that everything is allowed to them when they are expecting a child. Cakes with ketchup, chicken custard and other unusual food combinations can temporarily satisfy pregnant women. Unfortunately, their fantasy often does not end there, and for complete relaxation they want to smoke. The smoke of any tobacco product contains carbon monoxide, which prevents the transfer of oxygen from cell to cell; nicotine, which constricts blood vessels; carcinogenic resins that can cause mutations.

The effects of smoking during pregnancy can increase the development of cancer in mother and baby. Children of women addicted to cigarettes are twice as likely to become carriers. malignant tumors. U smoking girls the likelihood of giving birth to a stillborn baby is 30% higher than that of non-smokers, and in most cases they experience miscarriage or premature birth. Due to oxygen deficiency resulting from the influence carbon monoxide, the baby is born very weak, often premature. Mothers who quit smoking before pregnancy, but return to this habit after the birth of their child, ruin his health, because harmful substances enter the baby’s body through breast milk.

What is nicotine replacement therapy?

Psychologists scare smokers with the fact that quitting tobacco can only be done on a subconscious level, and there is not a single remedy that would alleviate the plight of people obsessed with cigarettes. A small dose of nicotine does not harm a man’s health as much as it harms the body of an expectant mother or teenager. Many strong people do not stop using tobacco products, even realizing the harm of smoking. A cigarette has a stronger effect on the human body than car exhaust fumes. Many people, who sensibly assess the situation, lack the willpower to break this habit once and for all.

Nicotine replacement therapy has been practiced for several years and is intended for men and women who cannot quit cigarettes themselves. Chewing gum and patches have almost no contraindications. They block the symptoms of nicotine addiction, in other words, smokers will not have the full sensations as when smoking, but gradually they will be able to wean themselves and develop willpower with the help of these drugs. The patch and chewing gum are able to maintain the required level of nicotine in the blood. Smoking during pregnancy with almost one hundred percent probability means that the child will be born very weak and defective, and expectant mothers begin to frantically search for effective means struggle. Plaster and chewing gum help in the fight against nicotine addiction. It is not yet known whether these products are safe for pregnant women to use, but there are other options for them.

Non-nicotine medications, such as Zyban, were originally used as antidepressants. It not only helps you quit smoking, but also promotes weight loss, which a person gains immediately after he stops smoking cigarettes.

Sports are everything

Smoking during pregnancy has a detrimental effect on the development of the fetus. If a woman, having decided to give birth to a child, cannot quit her bad habit, there are several ways to solve this problem without medical intervention. Scientists from one of the British universities suggested that abandoning tobacco products active sports will help, after which they conducted an experiment and confirmed their guesses. Knowing how smoking affects pregnancy and deciding to fight it, future mom can start with morning jogging or cycling. Sports activities improve mood and tone muscles, making a woman forget about the need for a cigarette. To give birth to healthy offspring, you need to start a different lifestyle several months before planning a pregnancy.

By playing sports, a woman will get in shape and begin to forget about her addiction to tobacco. Light jogging and cardio training are not contraindicated for pregnant women, however, restrictions on physical activity should be introduced closer to the birth of the baby. Expectant mothers are recommended to visit the pool, do yoga, walk at a moderate pace and perform special gymnastics. Smoking in the first weeks of pregnancy can also be eliminated with the help of the lungs physical activity. The main thing is that the expectant mother has a great desire to improve her health and give birth to a full-fledged child.

What to do if a pregnant woman can’t quit smoking

The harm of tobacco is known to everyone, but even the strongest men and women cannot overcome their addiction to cigarettes. If all attempts to quit this bad habit have been made unsuccessfully, the effects of smoking can be significantly weakened by starting to consume more healthy foods. It is especially important for pregnant women to include daily diet fish, cottage cheese, milk, citrus fruits.

Western scientists have found that vitamin D can reduce the damage of smoking to the lungs. From the first minutes of the appearance of tobacco in the body, the immune system begins to weaken due to the slowdown in the supply of nutrients. The vitamin D experiment continued for twenty years with the participation of 626 volunteers. The study's leader, Dr. Nancy Lange, plans to delve even further into this issue in the near future and see whether her knowledge in this area can be applied to improve the lung health of residents of polluted cities. The harm of smoking during pregnancy destroys the immunity of the mother and her unborn baby, but the situation can be corrected if the woman monitors her diet and eats more healthy foods. Vitamin D is found in mushrooms, caviar and some types of fish, eggs, dairy products and parsley. If it is deficient, men and women may experience teeth loss, appetite and vision deterioration. Babies with a lack of vitamin D are at risk of developing rickets and impaired development.

Pregnancy and smoking: consequences and impact on fetal development

Every year, the use of tobacco products causes the death of 5 million 400 thousand people. Every 6 seconds, one nicotine addict leaves the world. Smoking has a detrimental effect not only on the lungs and oral cavity, but also on the condition of the skin, vision, sexual and nervous system, brain. The smoke of each cigarette contains 12 thousand chemical compounds, such as methanol, hydrocyanic acid, benzene, butadiene, nitrogen oxides, nicotine. Carbon dioxide is the leader in its content in cigarettes: each contains 45-65 milligrams of this substance. Imagine what happens to the baby’s unformed body. All expectant mothers know about the dangers of smoking. But when girls take their first cigarette, they often don’t think about the fact that they are ruining not only their own health, but also that of their child.

Research shows that the baby of a nicotine-dependent woman is often born defective. The baby is at high risk of developing asthma and wheezing. The experiment was conducted with the participation of 735 children born to smoking mothers. Scientists at the Karolinska Institutet have identified an increase in the incidence of asthma and wheezing in such children - 65% and 34%, respectively. Smoking in late pregnancy did not have as much of an impact as nicotine use in the first trimester, when a new life was just beginning to emerge. Author this study suggests that the situation does not improve if the woman quits this bad habit shortly before conception occurs. It is important that girls give up smoking in advance and forever, and not just before the birth of the child.

Why is it important for expectant mothers to “quit” cigarettes forever?

Every year, almost half a million Russians die from smoking, including pregnant women. Doctors are trying in every possible way to convince expectant mothers of the colossal harm of nicotine, but not everyone has the willpower to give up their habit. Everyone knows very well that you cannot combine pregnancy and smoking - the consequences will be felt throughout your life. There is a misconception that with a daily reduction in the number of cigarettes, a woman with will disappear with time addiction to them. In fact, soon the dose will begin to increase. Everything planned should be accomplished overnight: you promised to start playing sports - run a few kilometers that same evening; decided to go on a diet - don’t put it off until next week; If you want to quit smoking cigarettes, quit right now.

After the birth of their first child, some women promise themselves not to have any more children: difficulties associated with care and upbringing make themselves felt in the first days of motherhood. A few years later, when the baby becomes independent, many people again have a desire to babysit the baby. If the mother starts using tobacco again during this period of time, subsequent offspring will be born weaker, so it is important to give up cigarettes forever.

Hollywood diva Julia Roberts knew how smoking affects pregnancy, so she managed to quickly quit this habit - the thirst for motherhood turned out to be stronger. Russian actress Natalya Bochkareva shares the trick with which she managed to give up cigarettes and at the same time switch to proper nutrition. The nutritionist advised her to more often eat foods that worsen the nicotine aftertaste: milk and cottage cheese, juices, vegetables and fruits. Coffee, fatty and fried foods make you want to smoke even more. This is another incentive to lose weight and quit a bad habit. Evelina Bledans admits that in her youth she dabbled in cigarettes, but when she became pregnant, she immediately found the strength to refuse - she really wanted a healthy and full-fledged baby. Unfortunately, the artist’s second child was born with Down syndrome. Dina Korzun was unable to give up nicotine on her own, so she had to resort to acupuncture. TV presenter Yulia Bordovskikh, even after giving birth to children, can afford to smoke a cigarette “for company,” but assures that this is not an addiction or a habit, and any mother can stop smoking even during pregnancy.

Many women are sure that the smoke of tobacco products causes complete relaxation, and for this they can sacrifice their health. Unfortunately, addiction occurs so quickly that tobacco addicts themselves do not notice it. If a person smokes 20 cigarettes daily, over two decades, 6 kilograms of soot will form in his lungs. In terms of body contamination, such women and men can be compared to mine workers. Smoking has been and remains a terrible poison, from which millions of people die. Pregnant women should isolate themselves and their children from inhaling cigarette smoke, and then the number healthy people will increase.

The news of pregnancy often plunges a woman into shock: the new situation becomes a real test of the strength and maturity of the expectant mother. The point is that with the advent of a new life inside, you will have to make certain adjustments to your usual lifestyle - buy vitamins, do exercises, eat only healthy foods, give up bad habits... As practice shows, most often problems for expectant mothers arise precisely with the last point of the program for bearing a healthy baby. Quitting smoking is a serious challenge, and quitting smoking while pregnant is also a vital task. Why an expectant mother needs to forget about cigarettes at all costs, you will find out in the article.

Of course, it's better to avoid this altogether. bad habit. However, for one reason or another, the percentage of women who smoke in our country increases every year, and the age of acquaintance with the first cigarette, on the contrary, decreases. What should an expectant mother do with her addiction to nicotine? There is only one answer and there are no compromises in this situation: quit smoking as soon as possible. It would be unfair and unethical to put pressure on women who smoke to feel guilty, because each of them is an adult, self-sufficient person who is responsible for herself and her offspring independently. And, of course, only the mother of the unborn baby has the right to make the final decision. We will simply help her see the general and objective picture of the relationships in the triangle “mother – cigarettes – child” by providing useful material for thought. We hope this will help a woman set her priorities correctly and easily step into new life, leaving a bad habit in the past.

How does smoking affect pregnancy?

Extensive research has been and is currently being carried out around the world on the effect of nicotine addiction on the course of pregnancy and the fetus in the womb. All of them confirm the complex adverse effects of cigarettes on a woman and her baby: the maternal body suffers, burdened by pregnancy, there is a threat to the normal prenatal development of the fetus, and the likelihood of abnormalities in infants and one-year-old children increases.

When a pregnant woman smokes, the baby is enveloped in a dense ring of smoke, which spasms the blood vessels of the fragile growing body and provokes the development of oxygen starvation in the fetus. Under the influence of nicotine, the placenta becomes thin and acquires round shape, the risk of detachment increases. Due to smoking, the hemoglobin of the mother's body decreases its active work, which concerns the transport of oxygen to the uterus and the baby in it. As a result of this disorder, arterial spasm of the uterus occurs, which becomes the cause of placental function disorder, and the child begins to systematically receive less of the oxygen he needs.

Each puff brings the expectant mother closer to serious and sometimes irreversible consequences, among which the most unfavorable are:

• high risk of spontaneous miscarriage;
• the birth of a premature baby with low adaptive abilities;
• probability of perinatal death;
• the small weight of the newborn, which significantly reduces his chances of full development;
• the formation of physical pathologies in the fetus;
• development of preeclampsia - the condition threatens the lives of both the mother and her child (the woman develops extensive swelling, protein in the urine, and blood pressure rises sharply);
• the risk of delayed manifestation of the consequences of smoking - intellectual and social disorders may occur in a child some time after birth.

Even a few puffs a day will not improve the situation - the consequences of smoking during pregnancy will manifest themselves in any case and, first of all, will be felt by the woman herself:

• future mothers who smoke feel much worse than those who do not have bad habits;
• early toxicosis and gestosis are the first symptoms of nicotine poisoning in the female body;
• smoking contributes to the appearance or worsening varicose veins veins in a pregnant woman, and also causes dizziness and digestive dysfunction (diarrhea or constipation);
• nicotine “eats” vitamin C in the mother’s body. The shortage of this useful substance results in metabolic disorder, decreased general immunity, problems with protein absorption, poor resistance to stress and depression.

Smoking during pregnancy casts a shadow on the well-being of the baby after birth. When a pregnant woman smokes, the fetus is poisoned by tobacco smoke. This is how the child finds himself in power passive smoking, which threatens him with acquiring bad habits in the future. Children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy are often introduced to tobacco and drinking at an early age. adolescence. Babies, doomed to nicotine addiction in the womb, are more capricious, sleep poorly, have difficulty concentrating, and many of them suffer from attacks of suffocation.

In addition, the latest Scientific research showed that carcinogens that enter the body of a smoking woman along with tobacco smoke depress reproductive system fetus, which is at the stage of formation. This means that children born in the future may face the problem of infertility: girls of smoking mothers have a sharply reduced supply of eggs, and boys may face erectile dysfunction(impotence).

The effect of smoking during pregnancy at different stages

It doesn’t matter what month of pregnancy a woman smokes – it harms her baby in any case. The only difference is which organ or system of the little man’s body will suffer more than others.

Smoking in early pregnancy

When a smoking woman is informed that she is expecting a child, she begins to suffer from remorse about her bad habit. In this case, the expectant mother can be reassured a little: nature took care of the new life in advance. Conception occurs around the 14th day menstrual cycle. Experts consider the first week to be neutral - a close connection has not yet been established between the woman and the embryo in her womb. The clump of cells that will later turn into a person is developing thanks to on our own and stocks. The embryo immerses into the endometrium with the onset of the second week of pregnancy, and the woman becomes suspicious about her position only after a delay in menstruation.

Smoking turns the entire physiology of pregnancy upside down, distorting all processes involved in the formation of the organs of the unborn child, replacing normal cells sick. In particular severe cases tobacco toxins distort the structure so much bone marrow child that a substance transplant is necessary after his birth. It is obvious that smoking during early pregnancy has the greatest degree of danger. One puff cigarette smoke brings the baby a whole range of toxic substances: nicotine, hydrogen cyanide, benzopyrene, tar, formaldehyde. Fetal hypoxia, lack of adequate blood flow in the placental vessels, spontaneous miscarriage, increased risk vaginal bleeding- this is only a tenth of the consequences of the combination of a bad habit with pregnancy. Every year the number of cases where women who smoke during pregnancy give birth to children with “ cleft palate" or " cleft lip" These palate pathologies are difficult to correct plastically.

Smoking during 1 month of pregnancy

It may happen that due to large-scale changes in the body, the smell of tobacco will seem disgusting to a woman. However, in most cases, the onset of pregnancy does not in any way affect the addiction, so the expectant mother continues to smoke, remaining for some time in the dark about her situation.

The risk of miscarriage at this time is maximum: maternal smoking literally cuts off oxygen to the embryo, without which not a single creature can survive. Without a complete oxygen supply, the process of laying down all important organs and systems of the child. Please note that passive inhalation of tobacco smoke causes the same harm to a pregnant woman as active smoking of cigarettes.

Smoking during the 5th – 6th month of pregnancy

At the 5th month of intrauterine life, the baby has already acquired arms and legs, he is actively trying to control them. After a period of activity, the child will certainly calm down to rest and gain strength. The little man can cough, hiccup, kick, and his mother can already accurately determine when he moves. During this period, the child’s body increases brown fat, due to which the temperature human body remains unchanged. Sweat glands form in the skin.

As a result of the research, it was possible to see a shocking picture: when tobacco smoke penetrates the woman’s body, and from there into the placenta, the baby grimaces and tries to move away from the harmful substance. The effect of smoking on pregnancy during this period disrupts the natural order of fetal development, leading to severe consequences. Among them are hypoxia and premature birth, which become a death sentence for the baby. At this age, he is still completely unprepared to face the outside world.

Smoking during 8–9 months of pregnancy

A regularly satisfied craving for cigarettes during the 8th month of expecting a baby results in serious complications: uterine bleeding, prenatal condition, miscarriage. Maternal smoking directly affects the fetus very strongly. Such children have underdevelopment of the brain, underweight and spontaneous death in the first hours/days after birth.

Ninth, last month the baby's stay in the mother's womb is very responsible - the child is preparing to greet the world with his first cry. Every week he gains about 250 g of weight and gradually descends into the pelvic cavity. The woman is increasingly experiencing short-term and painless contractions, and her easy, unconstrained breathing returns.

Smoking mercilessly interferes with this process and makes its own adjustments to the creation of a new person. Let us list the complications that are always observed in a woman who smokes in the last weeks of pregnancy:

• partial or complete detachment of the placenta, the development of severe uterine bleeding;
• pronounced hypertension;
• toxicosis;
• Start labor activity ahead of schedule;
• high risk of stillbirth;
• the likelihood of giving birth to a premature baby.

And this is a list of pathologies that can deprive a baby of all chances for full life, if his mother was unable to cope with her nicotine addiction during pregnancy:

• defects of the nervous system;
• mental disorders;
• Down syndrome;
• myocardial diseases;
• heterotropia;
• inguinal hernia;
• pathologies of the nasopharynx.

All doctors, as one, insist: it is never too late to quit smoking - even if a woman does it at the final stage of pregnancy, she will still provide an invaluable service to her baby.

Smoking and alcohol during pregnancy

Alcohol is another toxic substance that can extremely negatively affect the intrauterine development of a child. Cigarettes and alcohol are a very dangerous combination during pregnancy. Numerous studies in this area have presented the public with disappointing facts: ethanol, acetaldehyde and nicotine, having a complex effect on the fetus’s body, cause irreversible changes in the DNA chain, destroy the process of protein synthesis and cause severe brain pathologies.

Penetrating into the body not yet born child, alcohol remains there twice as long as in the mother’s body, so even irregular moderate doses of alcohol do not guarantee that the newborn will be healthy. Drinking alcohol and smoking during pregnancy damages the child's most vulnerable organs - the kidneys, liver and brain. Among babies born to mothers with bad habits, cases of sudden infant death syndrome are very common, when a child dies without objective reasons (most often in his sleep).

Harmful alcohol and nicotine addiction in the last weeks before childbirth causes the development of gestosis. This condition poses a danger to the life of the mother and fetus. The main target for toxins becomes vascular system mother, who as a result cannot fully supply the placenta with blood and valuable elements in it. In this regard, the child’s development slows down, placental abruption occurs, and premature birth may occur.

Smoking during pregnancy is a sign of selfishness and failure of a woman as a future mother, whose procreation instincts are not strong enough to put an end to the harmful addiction once and for all. A pregnant woman who smokes should not withdraw into herself, being left alone with the problem. On the contrary, she needs to ask for help - from doctors, family and friends. There are many ways to give up cigarettes, but first of all you need to really want it, and the health and well-being of your unborn baby will be the most important motivation for this.

The effect of cigarettes on fetal development. Video