What is dangerous smoking in early pregnancy

Tobacco smoking is a habit that harms the health of both the person and the people around him. Systematic inhalation of cigarette smoke can cause the development of many diseases. Smoking is especially harmful to women's health. It is most dangerous in the early stages of pregnancy. Why is this period considered critical and how dangerous is tobacco for a baby?

Stages of development of the embryo

In order to understand why cigarette smoke is so dangerous in the early stages, it is necessary to know what happens at the moment to the fetus. Early is called the first trimester of pregnancy, that is, the first 12 weeks. At this point, the embryo is also called an embryo.

In the first week of pregnancy, a multicellular morula is formed from a single-cell zygote. On the second, cells appear, of which later form temporary organs linking the mother and the embryo: the placenta and the umbilical cord.In the third week the nervous system begins to form, in the fourth - the musculoskeletal. During the fifth week, major morphogenetic changes occur, giving rise to the rest of the body systems.

On the sixth week, changes occur in the brain, the heart acquires four chambers, the kidneys and ureters develop, and the digestive system is divided into the usual for the adult sections. In the seventh week, the uteroplacental circulation is established, the embryo begins to receive nutrients from the mother. At the same time, the facial skull and the central nervous system develop intensively. By the eighth week, the head of the embryo becomes similar to the human head, and its hearing organs develop.

From 9 to 12 weeks the embryo grows, its tissues develop, from a shapeless pile of cells it turns into a creature similar to a human. By week 12, the genitals of the fetus are formed. Further development implies the improvement of the first trimester organs and systems.

Exposure of teratogenic substances to the mother and fetus during this period can disrupt any of the above processes. It is worth remembering that pregnancy is usuallydiagnosed no earlier than 5 weeks. By this time, cells have already formed, which will give rise to vital organs and systems. Smoking during this period can have disastrous consequences for the life and health of the future baby.

What is contained in tobacco smoke

We need to figure out why cigarettes are generally considered dangerous? What is the reason for their negative impact on the mother and fetus?

Tobacco smoke contains such toxic substances as: nicotine, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, benzene, aldehydes, hydrocyanic acid and methanol. It is worth knowing what each of them is dangerous with:

1. Nicotine. It causes addiction, narrows blood vessels, increases the concentration of dopamine in the synapses of the central nervous system, leads to a feeling similar to euphoria.
2. Carbon monoxide. Synonym - carbon monoxide. It forms a strong compound with hemoglobin - carboxyhemoglobin, leading to hypoxia of tissues and organs.
3. Nitrogen oxides. Toxic to the nervous system, form compounds with hemoglobin and myoglobin molecules.
4. Benzene. It is not only toxic, but also a carcinogen. Causes dependence, contributes to the development of anemia and leukopenia, toxic to the central nervous system.
5. Aldehydes. Cause mutations in the genetic material, contribute to the development of congenital enzyme deficiency.
6. Hydrocyanic acid. Blocks the respiratory chain, leads to tissue hypoxia.
7. Methanol. In the body it is oxidized to aldehydes.

Thus, the substances included in tobacco smoke, not only toxic to the body, but also cause mental dependence. This fact explains why some pregnant women, knowing about the negative effects of tobacco on the fetus, continue to smoke.

It is also worth noting that the above substances are able to penetrate the placental barrier, exerting their influence directly on the tissue of the fetus.

What is dangerous for smoking pregnant and fetus

Tobacco smoke affects both the pregnancy itself and the fetus. It is proven that smoking increases the risk of toxicosis of pregnant women. Even passive inhalation of cigarette smoke can cause the onset of early gestosis. This means that under the influence of tobacco, in women you increase the risk of the appearance of such complications as:

1. Vomiting pregnant. Frequent occurrence even among non-smokers, however, its extreme degree is possible - severe vomiting.In this case, the only treatment is abortion.
2. Dermatosis Rashes on the skin can have any localization, as a rule, they are subjectively manifested by itching. This is the easiest type of toxicosis.
3. Bronchial asthma. In some women, it occurs only during pregnancy. In this case, tobacco smoke can be a causal factor because it is a fairly strong allergen.
4. Tetany. Life-threatening complication, manifested in tetanic contraction of various groups of skeletal muscles. Showing abortion.
5. Osteomalacia. In this case, the bones of a pregnant woman become too fragile, losing a significant amount of calcium. Pregnancy in this case is contraindicated.
6. Anemia. In pregnant women, the hemoglobin level is reduced to normal, reaching boundary values. Tobacco smoke can lead to a critical reduction, hazardous to health.
7. Cardiovascular diseases. Pregnancy is a serious load on the heart. Nicotine also contributes to the narrowing of blood vessels, which leads to deterioration of the nutrition of the tissues of the heart. This can provoke serious complications, up to and including myocardial infarction.
8. Lack of vitamin C. During pregnancy, a woman needs more vitamins, but tobacco smoke, on the contrary, reduces their concentration in the blood. First of all, women smokers suffer from a lack of vitamin C.

In addition, smoking is dangerous for the developing embryo. His tobacco smoke can cause:

1. Teratogenic effect. So called various mutations under the influence of external factors. Tobacco smoke is a serious mutagen. Exposing it to the embryo in the early stages of its development can lead to severe anatomical and physiological deformities.
2. Violation of the placental blood flow. Being in the mother's body, the child can not receive nutrients and oxygen from the outside. His only connection to the world is the umbilical cord. Violation of blood flow in it leads to fetal hypoxia and death from lack of oxygen.
3. Miscarriage. Tobacco smoke can cause miscarriage or spontaneous abortion by affecting the muscles of the uterus. The uterus in this case begins to contract as during labor and pushes the fetus.
4. Genetic mutations. Changes in the genes of the embryo may not manifest in himself, but cause abnormalities in his children.

It is also worth knowing that smoking causes mutations in the germ cells of women long before pregnancy. This can cause genetic inferiority of gametes, leading to infertility or congenital deformities in children.

Thus, we can conclude that smoking has a very negative effect both on the organism of the future mother and on the vital activity of the fetus. In the early stages of pregnancy, all the vital organs of the unborn child are formed, because at this time tobacco smoke is the most dangerous. It is necessary not only to quit smoking, but also to protect yourself from cigarette smoke.

Video: harm to smoking during pregnancy