I know smoking is bad for me – but why?

Tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals, at least 50 of which cause cancer. Smoking dramatically increases your risk of lung cancer, heart disease, and over 50 other diseases including at least eight cancers, respiratory (breathing) diseases, asthma and stomach ulcers and psoriasis (dry, scaly skin).

Why can't I just cut down on the fags gradually?

It sounds like a good idea, but it’s difficult. You’ll just take more and deeper puffs to get the nicotine hit you crave. Decide to quit, set a date and get help.

Is second-hand smoke really that dangerous?

Yes, it’s estimated that several hundred people a year die from lung cancer caused by second-hand smoke. It almost certainly contributes to deaths from heart disease – a bigger killer than lung cancer.

Breathing other people’s smoke increases the risk of mouth and throat cancers and heart disease and makes chest problems and allergies worse. Children exposed to smoking may suffer damaging effects such as serious respiratory illness, asthma and middle ear disease. Second hand smoking is also linked to sudden infant death syndrome (a doubling of risk).

The Royal College of Physicians believes that up to 17,000 hospital admissions a year of children under five are due to their parents’ smoking. Women who smoke while pregnant are likely to reduce birth weight and damage the health of their baby.

Can smoking really cause impotence?

Cigarettes cause impotence in 120,000 men in Britain, yet few are aware of the risk. Campaigners want warnings saying ‘Smoking causes male sexual impotence’ on cigarette packets to raise public awareness and encourage men to quit.

A survey commissioned by ASH (Action on Smoking and Health) found that 88% of smokers did not link smoking and erectile dysfunction. Even when provided with a list of possible answers, only 33% identified the risk.

Clive Bates, the director of ASH, said ‘It appears that most smokers are unaware of the risk and that’s why we think new warnings are needed. He said that, although the risk of impotence caused b smoking had been known for some time, it never formed part of previous campaigns because of the taboo surrounding sexual dysfunction.

Impotence may not be as serious as cancer or heart disease, but it might be a more important and immediate reason for men in their twenties to quit smoking.

Male smokers tend to have a sperm count that is 15% lower than that of non-smokers. Smoking can also:

Reduce the amount of semen
Harm the motility of sperm, ie their ability to move
Affect their shape

Smoking can also affect blood vessels that supply the penis, causing erection problems.

What effect would smoking have if I were pregnant?

Pregnancy is about creating a new life, but ultimately it is the mother’s decision whether or not to continue smoking. Your pregnancy can be a powerful motivation to stop smoking, because you’re making this choice on behalf of your unborn child who is completely dependent on you.

Pre-Pregnancy:

Smoking makes it harder to conceive, irrespective of which partner smokes.

Both female and male smokers have lower fertility levels, while adults who were born to mothers who smoked have less chance of becoming a parent themselves. Smoking also reduces the chances of IVF succeeding.

It is thought that nicotine reduces a woman’s fertility by affecting the production of hormones that are necessary for pregnancy. Smoking also impedes the transportation of the egg through the Fallopian tubes to the womb.

If you’re trying for a baby, all of the above could impair fertility. Stopping smoking will increase your ability to conceive and your likelihood of success with IVF.

Why is it harmful to smoke during pregnancy?

Nutrients and oxygen to the unborn baby come via the placenta and umbilical cord. The baby is exposed to toxins in tobacco smoke and it also damages placental function.

Babies born to mothers who smoke :

 - are more likely to be born prematurely and will a low birth weight.
 - have organs that are smaller on average than babies born to non-smokers.
 - have poorer lung function.
 - are twice as likely to die from cot death and parents smoking.
 - are ill more frequently. If the mother smoked 15 cigarettes or more a day during pregnancy are taken into hospital twice as often during the first 8 months of life.

Help  –  I'm pregnant and is still smoking

It’s never too late to stop smoking and much of the damage caused by smoking can be reversed because your body has the ability to heal itself.

Cutting down isn’t usually effective because smokers find they inhale more deeply when smoking fewer cigarettes causing a build up of damaging substances.

Ideally nicotine replacement therapy should not be used by pregnant women. But it does have the advantage that they deliver less nicotine than cigarettes and none of the other disease-causing agents such as tar. Check with your doctor.

Booking A Stop Smoking Appointment:

Telephone: 01225 776085
Or
Email: cathy@hypnopractice.co.uk

Fees:  £95

STOP SMOKING Related pages:
Stop Smoking
Stop Smoking Session
Stop Smoking Recommendations