The Health Risks of Smoking During Pregnancy: Increased Risk of Stillbirth and Other Complications

KOMPAS.com – There are many health risks that can arise from cigarette smoke from pregnant women who are active smokers.

Dr. Ari Kusuma Januarto, SpOG(K) said that pregnant women who smoke heavily are closely related to intrauterine fetal death (IUFD).

Fetal death in the womb (IUFD) or known as stillbirth (stillbirth) is a condition in which a baby dies in the womb, so that when it comes out it is lifeless.

Also read: Active Smoking During Pregnancy, What Are the Consequences?

“Several other journals mention that not much consumption of cigarettes also often causes the condition of fetal death in the womb,” said Dr. Ari to Kompas.com on Friday (30/6/2023).

Quoted from the National Library of Medicine, a 2015 study showed that smoking during pregnancy was significantly associated with a 47 percent increase in the likelihood of stillbirth.

In subgroup analyses, smoking 1–9 cigarettes/day and more than 10 cigarettes/day was associated with an increased risk of stillbirth by 9 percent and 52 percent, respectively.

Also read: Beware of the Impact of Cigarette Smoke on Pregnant Women and Their Fetuses

How does smoking cause stillbirths?

The Head of the Advocacy and Legislation Division of the Executive Board of the Indonesian Doctors Association (PB IDI) explained that cigarette smoke that is inhaled can reach the fetus because it enters through the pregnant woman’s blood vessels, then into the placenta.

Quoted from the American Journal of Epidemiology, smoking reduces fetal oxygenation.

Nicotine also causes blood vessel constriction (vasoconstriction) and reduced prostacyclin synthesis, which increases vascular resistance and decreases fetal blood flow.

Also read: Types of Impact of Cigarette Smoke on Children’s Health

“Thus, it reduces the supply of oxygen and nutrients needed for healthy growth and development of the fetus,” he said.

The longer the fetus is exposed to cigarette smoke from the mother, it causes the development of its vital organs to be disrupted, even damaged, such as the brain, heart and lungs.

Even if there is no death in the womb, he said that fetuses exposed to cigarette smoke can experience low birth weight (LBW), premature birth, and respiratory complications.

“Several studies also state that there is a risk of birth defects, such as congenital heart disease, cleft lip, impaired brain development and gastrointestinal tract,” he said.

Also read: 8 Kinds of Organ Damage due to the Effects of Smoking to Watch Out for

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2023-07-02 23:00:00
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