Smoking During Pregnancy
March of Dimes, September 2007
[for Professionals mainly]
Smoking is a major public health problem. All smokers face an increased risk of lung cancer, other lung diseases, cardiovascular and other disorders. Smoking during pregnancy can harm the health of both a woman and her unborn baby. Currently, at least 10 percent of women in the United States smoke during pregnancy (1).   In the United States and in other industrialized countries, 18 percent of women smoke (2). This proportion is somewhat smaller in developing countries where only 8 percent of women smoke (3).   Statistics from the United States are compelling. According to the U.S. Public Health Service (4), if all pregnant women in this country stopped smoking, there would be an estimated: 11 percent reduction in stillbirths, 5 percent reduction in newborn deaths ... Cigarette smoke contains more than 2,500 chemicals. It is not known for certain which of these chemicals are harmful to the developing baby, but both nicotine and carbon monoxide play a role in causing adverse pregnancy outcomes ...

Tobacco Chemicals Linger in Babies
The New York Times, February 19, 2008
There is already much evidence that smoking during pregnancy is dangerous to the fetus. Smoking mothers' babies tend to be smaller than usual and more likely to have breathing problems. But research announced on Sunday suggests a way in which maternal smoking might also contribute to childhood cancers, as some have suspected ... Dr. Steven R. Myers of the University of Louisville presented evidence that three toxic chemicals linked to a variety of cancers and found in cigarette smoke made their way from mother to fetus during pregnancy ...

Cocaine and tobacco
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Women who smoke early in their pregnancies have nearly twice the risk of having a miscarriage as women who don't smoke. Pregnant women who use cocaine also substantially increase their risk of miscarriage ...

Maternal Smoking, Environmental Tobacco Smoke, and Orofacial Clefts
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, January 14, 2008
Smoking during pregnancy has been linked with orofacial clefts (OFCs) in many studies. However, most studies have not been able to assess the link between maternal smoking and specific cleft characteristics, such as bilateral clefts.

Drug Use During Pregnancy Causing Birth Defects Remains Serious Problem, Says Leading Drug Prevention Agency (Alcohol, Tobacco)
American Council for Drug Education, New York, May 5, 1998
According to ACDE advisor Dr. Terry Horton, M.D.: "Smoking during pregnancy may raise the risk of miscarriage or premature labor. But the primary danger is hindered fetal growth ... drinking during the early stages of pregnancy greatly increases the risk of a cluster of birth defects known as Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) ... marijuana during pregnancy is also associated with premature birth and low-birthweight babies ... The Council operates a 24-hour, toll-free, confidential drug help and referral service, 1-800-DRUG-HELP ...

Basic Facts About Drugs: Tobacco
American Council for Drug Education, 1999
Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of premature death in the United States ... There are approximately 47 million smokers in the U.S. ... Tobacco is the only organic source of nicotine, which is its addicting agent ... Passive smoking is the process that causes non-smokers to inhale smoke involuntarily. Some of the smoke they inhale is known as "sidestream smoke"—the smoke that smolders off the end of a cigarette, cigar, or pipe ... Sidestream smoke can cause respiratory distress and allergic reactions, as well as lung cancer ... Tobacco use has been implicated in ... Cancers ... Cardiovascular disease ... Pulmonary diseases ... Reproductive complications, such as miscarriage, premature birth, birth defects, and, especially, low-birthweight babies and babies with developmental problems. Nicotine depresses the appetite at a time when a woman should be gaining weight, and smoking reduces the ability of the lungs to absorb oxygen. Deprived of nourishment and oxygen, a fetus may not grow as fast and as much as it should ...

Prevalencia de enfermedades respiratorias en el primer año de vida en hijos de madres que fumaron durante el embarazo
Javier Mallol V., Revista chilena de enfermedades respiratorias
[Spanish]
Este estudio evaluó el efecto del tabaquismo materno durante el embarazo sobre la salud respiratoria de sus lactantes durante el primer año de vida, en 184 binomios madre-hijo. El análisis se realizó mediante chi cuadrado para proporciones y regresión logística multivariada ajustando para covariables. Los hijos de madres que fumaron durante el embarazo tuvieron un riesgo significativamente mayor de sufrir de bronquitis obstructiva (p < 0,01), de enfermedades respiratorias agudas en general (p < 0,01) y de hospitalización por neumonía (p < 0,05), en comparación con los hijos de madres que no fumaron durante el embarazo. Concordantemente con lo descrito en países desarrollados, en esta muestra proveniente de una población de bajos recursos socioeconómicos, el tabaquismo materno durante el embarazo aumentó significativamente la susceptibilidad de los lactantes para sufrir de bronquitis obstructivas, enfermedades respiratorias agudas y de hospitalizaciones por neumonía en su primer año de vida ... Palabras clave: Tabaco, embarazo, sibilancias, neumonía, lactantes ...

La exposición al humo pasivo afecta el desarrollo mental de los niños
Dr. Martin Gruenberg, Pediatra de Familia
[Spanish]

Maternal smoking and environmental tobacco smoke exposure and the risk of orofacial clefts
Honein MA et al., Epidemiology. 2007 Mar;18(2):226-33
[Spanish]
Numerosos estudios encontraron asociación entre fumar en el embarazo y hendiduras faciales ... El estudio confirma la modesta asociación entre fumar y hendiduras faciales que han sido reportados, e identifica los fenotipos más fuertemente afectados.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Last Updated: 2008/2/20

________________________________________________________________________________________________