Tobacco use can undermine fertility, UN health agency warns

Smoking very likely makes it harder to have a baby, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) warned in a new publication issued on Tuesday, highlighting that women who smoke have a 40 per cent higher risk of infertility compared to non-smokers. “For all people who plan pregnancies, our message is, ‘Stop smoking, improve your health, improve your reproductive health as well,’” said Dr Kerstin Schotte, Medical Officer with WHO’s Tobacco Free Initiative. WHO defines infertility as failing to achieve pregnancy after 12 months or more of regular unprotected sexual intercourse – a condition that affects one in six people globally. In a new report summarizing all the evidence on a link between tobacco smoking and infertility, the agency cited decades of evidence that shows tobacco use is associated with infertility in women while also being harmful to sperm quality and sexual function in men. WHO also noted that second-hand smoke can affect fertility, meaning that people can face possible reproductive risks even if they do not smoke. The WHO publication also suggests that quitting can make a difference as women who smoked in the past but no longer do so may have a 25 per cent lower risk of ...