In utero exposure to tobacco smoke and subsequent reduced fertility in females

Abstract

This large cohort study supports a small-to-modest association between in utero exposure to tobacco smoke and reduced fertility.

Associations between lifetime tobacco exposure with infertility and age at natural menopause: the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study

“…Findings from laboratory and epidemiological studies specify mechanisms postulated for delayed conception, including fetal ovarian germ cell loss, increases in zona pellucida thickness, and pathways in steroidogenesis that were negatively affected by tobacco smoke exposure 5 6 23 32–34 41 42. Our findings support the association between active smoking and infertility.…”

Active and passive smoking and fecundability in Danish pregnancy planners

“…In utero exposure to maternal smoking was associated with reduced fecundability (FRs in the range from 0.53 to 0.81) in two prospective cohort studies (22, 25) and one retrospective cohort study (26), while the association was nearly null in three retrospective cohort studies (FRs in the range from 0.96 to 1.02) (27–29). These studies ascertained exposure as we did, except for one study that used the subject’s mother’s self-report after delivery to ascertain exposure and found no association (28).…”

“…However, these studies did not use information on the amount or duration of smoking among the former smokers, which may have obscured possible tobacco effects with high cumulative levels of exposure (19, 24). With regard to prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke, studies of fecundability in relation to in utero exposure to maternal smoking are mixed, with some showing an inverse association (22, 25, 26) and others showing little association (27–29). …”

Cigarette smoke condensate exposure delays follicular development and function in a stage-dependent manner

“…1A); [2] ''diffused,'' when granulosa cells increased in number and outgrew the surrounding basal membrane (Fig. 1B); and [3] ''antral,'' when granulosa cells differentiated into cumulus cells and mural granulosa cells, with formation of an antral-like cavity (antrum) (Fig. 1C and D).…”

“…Cigarette smoking is a well-recognized health hazard that also affects reproductive health and fertility (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8). In women attempting spontaneous conception, cigarette smoking increased time to pregnancy (9) and accelerated depletion of ovarian follicles, causing early menopause (10)(11)(12).…”