You know that you can't smoke cigarettes when you're pregnant. If you love your nicotine, you might be upping your dose now in the hopes that you'll be pregnant soon and have to give up the habit. But if you're smoking as you try to get pregnant, you could be increasing the difficulty of conception. Smoking is not only bad for your general health; it can cause infertility.
Kenneth L. Noller, president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, recently wrote an article on the dangers of smoking. He points out that one in five adult women smokes despite the fact that smokers are more likely to have fertility problems (and numerous other health problems) than are non-smokers.
Work with a doctor to figure out the best way for you to quit smoking. You should be open with your fertility specialist about your smoking habits so that you can get accurate information about how this may be affecting your fertility treatments. Do it for the baby. And do it for yourself as well!
