Final answer:
Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of premature birth, stillbirth, low-birth-weight infants, and SIDS. It can also interfere with fetal development and the effectiveness of certain drugs. Additionally, smoking poses health risks to the mother, including lung cancer, heart disease, and decreased fertility.
Step-by-step explanation:
When a mother smokes during pregnancy, it can have serious health risks for both the mother and the developing baby. The presence of nicotine and other harmful chemicals in cigarettes reduces the blood oxygen levels for the fetus, leading to complications such as premature birth, low-birth-weight infants, stillbirth, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Moreover, smoking while pregnant increases the risk of miscarriages and can compromise the effectiveness of certain therapeutic drugs due to the elevated levels of liver enzymes that break down these medications.
In addition to the effects on the developing baby, smoking also increases risks of illnesses such as lung cancer, heart disease, and emphysema for the mother. It is also associated with a higher chance of infertility in women by interfering with estrogen production, with female smokers being approximately 60 percent more likely to be infertile compared to non-smokers.
The risk of death due to fires, motor vehicle crashes, and other accidents is higher in smokers as well. As consistently highlighted by the Surgeon General's warnings found on cigarette packaging, the complications of smoking in relation to pregnancy are significant and well-documented.