Passive Smoking Increases Risk of Infertility Development by 18%

According to new research, active and passive smoking are connected with the increased risk of women's infertility development and early beginning of menopause

Women who are often affected by tobacco influence - self-smoking or passive smoking - can have the menopause 1-2 years earlier than women who have never smoked and affected by passive influence of cigarette smoke.

Present and former smokers are 14% more affected by infertility risk. Meanwhile passive smokers who are regularly affected by smoke influence have problems with fertilization in contrast to non-smoking women by 18%  more frequently.

The research results have been published in the internet journal TobaccoControl.

The scientists have used the data of 79 690 women in the age from 50 to 79 who had early menopause. Present and former smokers were asked how many cigarettes they smoked a day, at what age they started smoking (before 15 or after 30) and how many years they were smoking. The non-smoking volunteers were probed about the fact if they lived with a smoker in their childhood, as an adult and also if they had a job where their colleagues smoked at the workplace. 15,4% of women told about problems with fertilization within at least 12 months.

The scientists confirm that the tobacco influence was obviously connected with the increased risk of infertility development and early beginning of menopause. In comparison with women who have never smoked, present and former smokers were 14% more affected by the risk of infertility. It was also connected with the 26% risk increasing of early menopause at the age under 50 years.

Adapted from Eurolab