Smoking & your health
Information for women
How does smoking affect
your health?
When you smoke, poisons from tobacco smoke
pass through your lungs and into your blood
stream. They are carried around your body
and interfere with the way it works. Every puff
you take on a cigarette increases the carbon
monoxide in your bloodstream which takes the
place of oxygen in your blood. The nicotine in
the smoke immediately increases your heart rate
and blood pressure. It causes your blood vessels
to narrow, reducing blood flow. The combination
of these causes great stress to your body,
especially your heart.
Over time, smoking starts to take its toll on
your body. It depresses your immune system,
interferes with your lungs’ clearing system,
reduces blood flow to your hands and feet and
hardens your arteries.
What diseases does
smoking cause?
Smoking causes lung cancer, heart disease, stroke,
emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Smoking
also causes cancer of the mouth, nose, nasal
sinus, throat, voice box, oesophagus, pancreas,
stomach, kidney, bladder, ureter, cervix, and bone
marrow (myeloid leukemia).
Smoking causes blindness, loss of bone density,
hip fractures, gum disease, peptic ulcers and
peripheral vascular disease (PVD). Problems
caused by smoking can be painful, crippling and
long lasting. The earlier you quit, the more you
reduce your risk of serious illness and early death.
The contraceptive pill
The pill is the most effective and widely used
form of contraception. While smoking is
dangerous by itself, if you smoke and take the
pill you increase your risk of ill health even more.
For example, you have a greater risk of suffering
a heart attack or stroke. This risk rises significantly
as you get older. If you want to gain all the
benefits of the pill, you shouldn’t smoke.
Fertility
If you smoke, you may find it more difficult to
become pregnant. If you stop smoking, you
should find it easier to conceive.
Men who smoke are more likely to develop
problems with getting or maintaining an
erection, due to the effects of smoking on the
blood vessels of the penis. Also, they may have
less healthy sperm. Quitting smoking can help
prevent these problems.
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5
Weight gain
Most people do gain some weight when they
quit smoking. But research shows that in the long
term, the average weight of ex-smokers is similar
to women who have never smoked.
On average, smokers weigh slightly less than
people who don’t smoke. This is thought to be
due to the effects of nicotine, which suppresses
hunger and speeds up the way the body
processes food.
Weight changes also depend on things such
as exercise and eating habits. Plan a range of
healthy snacks. But be realistic, allow yourself
some treats. Also, think about doing some
exercise. For example, walk up stairs rather than
take the lift, walk to the shops or around the
block for exercise. This may even help you quit.
If worrying about putting on weight is stopping
you from quitting smoking, act on your concerns.
Talk to your doctor or dietician, and make a
sensible eating plan. A lot of women who are
concerned about putting on weight before they
quit actually find that it isn’t the problem they
thought it would be.
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Pregnancy
If you smoke when you are pregnant the
combination of carbon monoxide and nicotine
in cigarettes makes it harder for your baby to get
the oxygen and nourishment it needs. Smoking
places stress on the baby’s heart and affects the
development of its lungs.
Pregnant smokers have a greater risk of
miscarriage, pregnancy complications and
preterm birth. Smoking increases the risk
of having a low weight baby, which is more
vulnerable to infection and other health
problems. The baby of a smoker is more likely to
die at or shortly after birth.
If you quit before becoming pregnant or in the
first few months, your baby’s birthweight will be
the same as if you had been a non-smoker. Also,
you reduce the risk of preterm birth and other
pregnancy complications.
8
Parenting
Every time you smoke and you’re with children,
they are smoking too. When exposed to
cigarette smoke, babies and young children
have a greater risk of becoming sick from croup,
bronchitis, bronchiolitis and pneumonia, and
dying from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS
or cot death). Children of smokers are more at
risk of asthma, meningococcal disease and ‘glue
ear’ (an ear infection which may cause hearing
loss).
The best way to protect children from tobacco
smoke is by a total ban on smoking inside the
home. For more information on making your
home smokefree, visit www.smokefree.org.au
Children learn from you and copy what they
see. If you have children and don’t want them
to smoke, quitting can reduce the chances that
they will become smokers. If you cannot quit yet,
it helps to let them know that you would prefer
they didn’t smoke and why.
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Menopause
Women who smoke reach menopause one or
two years earlier than non-smokers. This may be
due to the toxic effect of chemicals from smoke
on your ovaries and the effects of nicotine on
sex hormones. Smokers may also have more
menopausal symptoms. Quitting results in
menopause starting later.
Smoking results in loss of bone density in older
women, and increases the risk of hip fractures.
Quitting as early as possible will reduce your risk.
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QUIT TIPS
Once you’ve decided you want to quit,
make sure you’re successful by planning
before you stop:
l Throw away all cigarettes, lighters and
ashtrays in your home and car. If your partner
or other member of your household smokes,
suggest that they stop too, or only smoke
outside the house. Your children suffer if
anyone smokes in your home.
l Plan how to handle the places and events
that you know make you want to smoke.
l Talk to your family and friends about how
they can help and encourage you to quit.
l Treat yourself with the money you have
saved. Your efforts deserve to be rewarded!
l Remember each craving only lasts a few
minutes. Use the 4Ds – delay smoking, deep
breathe, drink water, do something else.
l If you have a cigarette it’s not the end of
your quit attempt. A slip-up is a setback, not
a defeat.
l If you are finding it difficult: Call the Quitline
on 13 7848 (13 QUIT) for a free Quit Pack and
for information and support to help you quit
smoking. Or visit our website www.quit.org.au
There is help close by
Family Planning
Victoria
Clinic and Administration
901 Whitehorse Road
Box Hill VIC 3128
Telephone (03) 9257 0100
Websites
www.sexlife.net.au
www.fpv.org.au
Action Centre
Level 1, 92-94 Elizabeth Street
Melbourne VIC 3000
Telephone (03) 9654 4766
Toll free 1800 013 952
Outreach clinics
Hoppers Crossing Youth
Resource Centre
82 Derrimut Road
Hoppers Crossing VIC 3029
Telephone (03) 9742 8155
Cranbourne Integrated
Care Centre
140–154 Sladen Street
Cranbourne VIC 3977
Telephone (03) 5990 6789
Goulburn Valley Health
Graham Street
Shepparton VIC 3632
Telephone (03) 5882 2460
The Quit logo is a registered trademark of The Cancer Council Victoria.
Quit Victoria is a joint initiative of The Cancer Council Victoria,
the Department of Human Services, the National Heart Foundation and
the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation.
8/2006
Produced by Quit Victoria
PO Box 888 Carlton Victoria 3053
Telephone (03) 9663 7777
© 2006