It's important for any girl or woman who wants to have children at any point in her life to know that cigarette smoking can cause:
- reduced fertility1
- early menopause1
- an increase in the likelihood that it may take a year or more to become pregnant2
- complications of pregnancy, because the carbon monoxide inhaled with cigarette smoke reaches the fetus and prevents it from getting the nutrients and oxygen (as much as 25%) needed for proper growth1,3
- significant increases in the risk of the newborn dying from sudden infant death syndrome4
1 Women and Smoking, American Lung Association Fact Sheet, August 1997.
2 Girl Talk About Smoking, Smoking and Health Program, Health Department of Western Australia, August 1997.
3 Smoking and Pregnancy, American Lung Association Fact Sheet, August 1997.
4 Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, American Lung Association Fact Sheet, August 1997. |
