How Smoking Burns You Down Below

You know cigarettes damage your lungs and your looks. Discover how they mess with your reproductive system.

Cervical cancer. Research shows that smokers infected with human papillomavirus have a greater risk of developing invasive cervical cancer than nonsmokers with the virus. The chemicals in cigarettes may weaken the ability of cervical cells to fight off the infection, explains Carolyn D. Runowicz, a gynecologic oncologist and member of American Cancer Society’s national board of directors.

Fertility issues. Studies indicate that smoking can make it harder to conceive. Chemicals in cigarettes may alter cervical mucus, making it toxic to sperm. What’s more, women who smoke cigarettes are at two to four times higher risk of ectopic pregnancy (when a fertilized egg implants outside the uterus).

Period problems. Lighting up may mess with hormone levels, causing irregular menstrual cycles. And smokers appear more likely to experience killer cramps, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

For those couples out there who are smokers and really having a hard time to have a baby you may want to consider this advice… stop smoking and live a healthy lifestyle.

CAN’T QUIT SMOKING?

Cut back instead. A European study found that smokers who reduced their cigarette consumption by 50 percent completely stopped puffing away in one year.

One in three smokers who cut their cigarette consumption by half become a non-smoker within a year. Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) also proved helpful in getting smokers to give up the habit completely.

With NRT, your body still gets the nicotine it graves, minus the harmful effects of smoking. Available in patch or gums form (like Nicorette gum). NRT can make nixing the habit easier to bear.