Good Herbal Health

Pregnancy and cigarette smoking don’t go together. What goes together with cigarette smoking is low birth weight, premature babies, miscarriages, or worse stillborn babies. If a woman wants to have a safe and healthy pregnancy, she should quit smoking for good.

Medical researchers have long found that cigarette smoking is bad for expectant mothers. Studies showed that smoking stimulates contractions of the uterus which could lead to premature birth.

More importantly, health experts also believe that women who smoke decrease their chances of getting pregnant. But if they do get pregnant, they run the risk of miscarriage.

In most marriages, there is no problem of infertility. A majority of women between the ages of 20 and 25 become pregnant during the first year of marriage. And that includes a substantial number who have tried to prevent conception with various birth and control methods. The fertility prospects usually continue to be satisfactory for women up to the age of 35, but the chances decline for women in their late 30s. This is further aggravated if the woman who wants to get pregnant smokes cigarette

When the pregnancy does occur, it should be regarded as a natural process rather than a confining illness. Although some of the bodily functions are altered by the approaching motherhood, it should be remembered that women have been bearing children for thousands of years, and the chances for a safe and successful delivery were never better than today. On the other hand, women thousands of years ago were not exposed to harmful and bad habits such as smoking unlike women of today.

The expectant mother can look forward to hearing a variety of old wives’ tales about the hazards of pregnancy from well-meaning friends. Expect warnings about smoking—directly or indirectly—as this is generally considered bad for pregnant women.  But unless there are complications, there is no reason for anxiety. And many of the complications can be prevented with good medical care. The woman preparing for motherhood can generally relax and enjoy the state of pregnancy if she follows basic rules of health and hygiene. An important part of this, of course, is avoiding cigarette smoking.

Many obstetricians recommend that women refrain from taking any medications, including patent medicines such as cold remedies, during the first three months of pregnancy unless the medicine is essential for the preservation of the mother’s health.

There are a number of chemical substances in drugs which may or may not affect the development of the embryo. Smoking cigarette produces some of these harmful chemicals like tar and nicotine. A study of more than 16,000 pregnancies shows that mothers who smoke cigarettes are more likely to have stillborn babies, premature babies, and babies who are below average in weight than nonsmoking mothers. Mothers who smoke are also more likely to have spontaneous abortions or miscarriages.