Pregnancy can act as a strong motivation to quit smoking. Smoking while pregnant can have many adverse effects on the unborn baby. The unborn baby is completely dependent on the mother for its nutrition. The pregnant mother, who smokes, passes the dangerous chemicals present in cigarettes to her unborn baby. Hence it is of utmost importance to find a Way to quit smoking .

In the pre-pregnancy stage, smoking makes it difficult to conceive irrespective of whether the partner smokes or not. Smoking affects the fertility levels of both men and women. Nicotine is known to reduce the fertility of women by affecting the release of hormones necessary for pregnancy. Smoking also affects the transportation of eggs through the Fallopian tubes to the womb. The sperm count is also known to become less in men by about 15% than normal. Smoking also reduces the amount of semen, harms the mobility of sperm and affects their shape. Smoking can also cause erection problems in the penis due to the improper supply of blood.

During pregnancy, the fetus is supplied with toxins present in tobacco smoke which may also damage the placental function. The pregnant woman who smokes contains less oxygen in her blood than normal which in turn affects her baby. This may lead to an increase in the fetal heart rate as the baby struggles to get enough oxygen.

Babies born to smoking mothers may be premature or have a low birth weight. They might also have smaller organs compared to normal babies. They are twice as likely to die from cot death. These children also become ill more frequently. They get painful diseases like inflammation of the middle ear and asthmatic bronchitis more frequently.