Cigarette Smoking Effects on Prenatal Development Essay

According to, “Teratogens and their effects on Unborn and Nursing Infants,” published by The University of North Texas, there is a list of common teratogens that are known throughout the world and many reasons that lead to a child having chances for these teratogens. According to Kathleen Stassen Berger, writer of, “The Developing Person through Childhood and Adolescence,” she defines behavioral teratogens to be known as agents and conditions that can harm the prenatal brain, impairing the future child’s intellectual and emotional functioning. The teratogen known for behavioral is known to affect the brain in some occasions if damage is affected a lot more so invading the brain and the child intellectuality to function

A teratogen is a substance that acts as a toxin that can cause a birth defect. A teratogen can be a prescribed medication, a street drug, alcohol use, or even a disease present in the mother that can cause an increased risk for the baby to be born with a birth defect. Some teratogens may cause birth defects that are noticed immediately at birth and some you can’t determine for several years. Usually the more and longer the developing fetus is exposed to teratogens the worse the consequences will be.

The second action with exposure to teratogens is smoking. Smoking during a pregnancy can cause multiple problems. Some of those problems could be low birth weight, placenta issues, miscarriage, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), premature birth, or other birth defects.

Over the years, statistics show that smoking cigarettes can cause many serious health issues. These issues compound when the smoker is expecting. Fourteen percent of U.S. mothers smoke while pregnant despite knowing the fact that smoking causes harm to both mother and child. In younger mothers, age 25 and under, that number rises significantly to 20 percent. If a woman smokes then becomes pregnant, she must decide whether or not to quit. Woman are aware that cigarettes are not good for them or their baby, but do they understand the severity of smoking while carrying their unborn child in their womb? In this paper I will evaluate how women who smoke while pregnant are at high risk for early miscarriage, preterm birth, and birth defects. Is smoking a cigarette worth risking the life of your unborn child?

Another harmful substance that would be considered a teratogen is nicotine. Smoking during pregnancy I s hazardous! It has been linked to some 115,000 miscarriages and 5,600 infant deaths a year as well as to atopic pregnancy. I’ve learned the babies born by mothers who smoke cigarettes aren’t as healthy, they don’t receive as much nutrients, less blood oxygen, and could be born under weight. Also I believe that smoking moms are more likely to suffer from apnea (breathing lapses) and are twice as likely to die of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). Also there was a study that showed children of smokers tended to be more prone to respiratory disease.

More then 15% of women smoking while pregnant. Babies who's mothers smoke have more then 20% higher chance of being born with cleft lip, cleft palates, shortened or missing limbs, and abnormally shaped heads compared to babies born to nonsmoking mothers. Babies born to mothers who smoked during pregnancy are even more likely to have learning disorders and behavioral problems.

Teratogens can harm an embryo. Most will not kill an embryo. However, any large quantity of teratogens like nicotine will

What is a teratogen? How does it affect normal prenatal development? Provide at least two examples to support your response. A definition of “a teratogen” it is a type of drugs that can be harmful to the fetus or a mother that is breastfeeding her baby. The elements of all these drugs all types of illegal drugs over the counter can identified as a dangerous drug that can exposure to a baby. There are chances of risk with a baby can be born with a defect. I would say in 1 percent chances that a woman is pregnant with a baby can have birth defect, it is rarely that it will happen it depend on each and individual women that are exposure to the “teratogen.” For example, a teratogen can happen in a different environment that can be exposure too which is found in the work place, house and the infectious diseases. Although, a major sources of birth defect and developmental of the incapacity intake it alcohol and

As previously mentioned, environmental factors, such as exposure to taratogens, can affect the development of the unborn child. Broderick and Blewitt (2105) define a teratogen as “substances or agents that can cross the placental barrier and produce fetal deformities when taken or absorbed by the mother during pregnancy” (p.619). These substances include drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, pollution, stress hormones, poor nutrition, and diseases, such as AIDS. Consumption of drugs and/or alcohol can lead to low birth weight, as well as, physical, cognitive, and behavioral abnormalities. Furthermore, more recent studies are showing that exposure to pollutants can affect an individual’s development. For example, a study of the

Constantly smoking means the baby is smoking to, therefore smoking can begin to effect the baby’s only sources of oxygen and nutrients. Smoking contains over 4,000 chemicals including: lead, cyanide, arsenic and carbon monoxide. These chemicals can spread to the blood stream, which is the baby’s only source of oxygen and nutrients. Smoking may also result with problems taking place in the placenta. This is connected to the baby and is their source of food, oxygen and eliminates buildup of wastes. The baby can separate from the womb, which can result in bleeding, for this effect can be dangerous to the mother and child.

Did you or someone you know smoke cigarettes while pregnant? Were you ever around someone smoking while pregnant? Have you been smoking, and recently discovered you were pregnant? “A teratogen is an environmental agent such as a drug, chemical, virus, or other factor that produces a birth defect” (Feldman, 2011 pg. 64). Nicotine is a well-known harmful chemical that is used in cigarettes. It is also a known teratogen.

The number one risk to unborn babies is smoking.  Smoking during pregnancy reduces the amount of oxygen that the baby receives and increases the risk of miscarriage, bleeding, and morning sickness. Chemicals inhaled while smoking may lead to other health problems with the baby. Reduced birth weight, premature birth, increased risk of SIDS, and stillbirth are other possible consequences. Pregnant women should also avoid second hand smoke, as it carries much of the side effects as actual

A teratogen is a condition, or agent, that expands the possibilities for prenatal irregularity - which can result in birth complications as well as defects. These agents include, chemicals, viruses drugs, pollutants, stress, malnutrition and more (Berger, pg. 73, 2014). However, not all teratogens have physical defects, but rather mental ones. These are called behavioral teratogens and they affect the brain. However, the age and development of the fetus determines how it will be affected. Some teratogens only effect or damage the fetus during a critical period (Berger, pg. 73, 2014). This is why timing of the exposure to a teratogen(s) affects the risk of harm to the fetus. For example, during the last half of week 3 into most of the 6th week,

While pregnant women who smoke cigarettes on a daily basis can greatly harm their fetus. There are many effects that cigarettes smoking by pregnant women have on their fetus. As researches show that smoking can induce spontaneous abortion too. The Tabaco smoke in cigarettes greatly reduces fetal growth through the presence of nicotine, carbon monoxide, and hydrogen cyanide. Through this research, “if women smoke during pregnancy, their baby is exposed to harmful chemicals such as tar, nicotine, and carbon monoxide. Nicotine causes blood vessels to constrict, so less oxygen and nutrients reach the fetus. Carbon monoxide decreases the amount of oxygen the baby receives” (Medline plus). A good mother should protect their unborn babies because when a pregnant mother smokes, their babies smoke too. Also Smoking while pregnant reduces an unborn baby’s oxygen, this place at risk for poor lung function, and low birth weight. According to this research of pregnant women who smoke cigarettes “the risk of preterm birth and problems with the way the placenta attaches to the uterus are increases in women who smoke during pregnancy. Also, infants born to women who smoke during pregnancy tend to be smaller than those born to nonsmokers. They are more likely to have asthma, colic, and childhood obesity. They also have an increased risk of dying from sudden infant

According to dictionary.com a teratogen is “a drug or other substance capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, causing birth defects”. Teratogens are also substances that are found in the environment which are known to cause defects in fetal development. Teratogens are one of the leading causes of death to newborns in the nation. “There are four major factors that depend on the extent of fetal defects and those are the dosage, genetic makeup of the mother and the developing fetus, fetal age, an other negative influences on pregnancy” (Berk, 2012). Some of the common teratogens include alcohol consumption, exposure to radiation, environmental pollution, tobacco and or drug use, and certain prescription and non-