Binge Drinking, Smoking, and Fertility

Jan 16, 2011
Melanie Shearer

Drinking and Smoking Harm Fertility - Russell Yarwood

Both drinking and smoking can have adverse affects on parents' abilities to conceive a child. Learn how these two bad habits affect fertility.

Consuming mass amounts of alcoholic beverages in order to produce intoxication is a problem that is on the rise and can lead to inhibited behaviors, violence, and even death. Binge drinking, especially when trying to conceive a baby, can lead to poor fertility outcomes.

What is binge drinking?

In women, binge drinking involves drinking four or more drinks in a two-hour time frame. This can lead to serious health issues, including the possibility of alcohol poisoning and death. In an article published on the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website, it was reported that 75% of all alcohol consumed in the United States was in the form of binge drinking, and yet another study reported that 70% of binge drinkers were adults older than age 26.

Why is binge drinking dangerous?

Binge drinkers have a higher risk of accidental injuries such as car crashes, falls, and burns. Not only do these unintentional injuries cause by binge drinking put a woman at risk for health problems, it also affects her fertility. Several studies have shown that women who partake in excessive alcohol intake are more likely to experience problems with conception and will be more likely to have to resort to medical methods in order to increase fertility.

Women who consume alcohol are better off in the long run to reduce consumption to less than two drinks per day, not only for increased fertility, but also to increase the overall health and well-being of the potential mother-to-be. A woman who has taken every step necessary to increase health will have a higher chance of having an uncomplicated pregnancy than those who continue to binge drink.

Smoking while trying to conceive

There have been several studies published which have linked smoking with decreased ability to conceive a child. Because cigarettes have over a 100 different types of toxic chemicals, women are advised to stop smoking immediately, not only if they want to conceive, but also to increase the chances that they will be alive to take care of their children.

Decreased egg quality affects conception ability

Other health problems aside, cigarette smoking has been shown to decrease egg quality in women. Since most months only one egg is released to be fertilized, it benefits fertility to have this one egg that does get released to be the healthiest it can be. Healthier eggs are more apt to be fertilized and produce a healthy baby than those that have been altered by harmful cigarette chemicals. In addition, more chromosomal abnormalities have been noted in eggs from smoking mothers. This could potentially lead to miscarriage or retardation in the embryo.

Fertility drugs' effectiveness is decreased in smokers

Another issue with smoking is how it alters the ability of fertility doctors to have success getting a woman pregnant. Many of the medications that are given to women seeking fertility assistance are not as productive in women who smoke. For example, a common medication that is given to increase the number of eggs produced each month produces much lower number and quality of eggs in smokers than in women who do not smoke. Using this information, it should be easy to see how even a woman who is trying to get pregnant naturally can experience fertility issues because of cigarettes.

The best advice that can be given concerning cigarettes is to quit – plain and simple. Even women who have smoked for a long period of time can increase her chances of conceiving a child by quitting. While there have been plenty of babies born from women who have smoked from preconception through birth, many times these babies experience issues which could have been preventable as they age. Recent studies have even shown that smoking while trying to conceive and pregnant can lead to the child having reproductive issues when she comes of age. The healthiest method to conceive and raise a baby involves a smoke-free, alcohol-free environment.