Breast Cancer To Blood Clots: 5 Reasons Why Women Should Quit Smoking

‘Smoking is injurious to health.’ Where have we heard it? Well, it is displayed on the packet, advertised before film screenings and instructed by health experts too. However, despite knowing this, people cannot resist lighting one up due to habit.

Smoking is known to be one of the hardest addictions to get rid of. People who smoke would tell you that it is under stress that they for a cigarette the most. You would also find many first-person accounts on the internet where people have confessed how hard it is to quit, and the withdrawal symptoms make it even harder to give up on the habit.

Recently, Dr Cuterus aka Dr Tanaya Narendra added a reel on Instagram where she suggested why women specifically should quit smoking. We know that it affects our lungs, irrespective of how we consume it. The act has an adverse impact on pregnant women, newborns, toddlers, elders and anyone who inhales the smoke passively.

Let’s see the other ways in which smoke can affect a woman’s body.

Increases Risks Of Breast Cancer, Causes Breasts To Sag

According to a study conducted by the National Library of Medicine on 80,000 postmenopausal women, there was a 9% and 16% increase in the risk of breast cancer among former and current smokers, respectively.

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A post shared by Dr. Tanaya | Millennial Doctor (@dr_cuterus)

Dr Cuterus also mentioned in her story that smoking causes the breasts to sag. The act affects the elasticity of the skin resulting in people losing firmness around certain body parts.

Causes Premature Menopause

The report mentioned that two studies have concluded the relation of smoking with sex hormones and how they are responsible for early menopause among women. The act brings down the levels of anti-müllerian and inhibin-B values among smokers.

Smoking also disrupts the hormonal balance in the body by causing spikes in levels of progesterone in the body.

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Increases Risks Of Blood Clots

Dr Cuterus mentioned that smoking is particularly harmful to women who take oral contraceptive pills. It can increase the chances of blood clots in the body and elevate the risks of heart disease.

Makes It Difficult To Get Pregnant

Smoking has a direct effect on the ovaries. When it causes hormonal imbalance, it can also affect the quality of eggs. Thus, your habit can also make it hard for you to get pregnant.

It has been found that smoking can even create complications during pregnancy. It can increase the risk of the baby being born too early, with a lower weight or disabilities. Smoking has also been found to be associated with sudden infant death syndrome, says a report on smokefree.gov.

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Increases Risks Of Many Types of Cancers

There is no direct association between smoking with getting infected by the human papillomavirus (HPV), the major cause of cervical cancer. However, it definitely was found to increase the risks for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN).

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It also increases the risk of getting advanced colorectal neoplasia, even if you have smoked only for 10 years. The NLM study also said that it would take 30 years of smoking for men to be in the high-risk category for the same disease.