Tobacco: The silent culprit that makes it difficult for many couples to have children

(DN) - According to doctors, in reality, many couples fall into the tiring journey of infertility due to the habit of smoking and secondhand smoke.

The toxic substances in cigarette smoke not only destroy sperm quality but also affect the reproductive health of the wife. Therefore, quitting smoking early is considered an important “key” to help improve the chances of becoming a father or mother for many families.

Cigarettes "separate" the journey to parenthood

After 3 years of marriage, Mr. NTV (32 years old, in Long Binh ward, Dong Nai province) and his wife still have no children even though they both want to be parents.

More than a year ago, Mr. V. and his wife began their journey to "find a child" through medical intervention. What shocked Mr. V. and his wife, making them slow to have children and having to seek infertility treatment, came from Mr. V. himself. The main cause was the habit of smoking cigarettes that Mr. V. had maintained for more than 10 years, with an average of one pack per day.

Smoking habit affects men's reproductive health. Photo: Bich Nhan

“Although I know that cigarettes are harmful and cause many diseases, I did not expect that smoking would make it so difficult for my wife and I to have children. The doctor asked me to stop smoking completely for the infertility treatment to be effective. I will definitely quit smoking because having children is still the greatest wish of both my wife and I,” Mr. V. shared.

As a result, after half a year of following the doctor's advice, Mr. V. and his wife received good news: his wife was pregnant. According to doctors, this is not a rare case in men's clinics.

The smoking habit of many men causes their sperm count to decrease day by day. Mr. HVM (36 years old, in Dinh Quan commune, Dong Nai province) still cannot give up the smoking habit despite many warnings from doctors.

Mr. M. shared: “I know that smoking has many harmful effects on reproductive health. Especially when my wife and I have been married for 5 years but have not had children and the main reason is me. I have smoked for a long time and many times intended to “quit” smoking when my wife and I went to the doctor for infertility treatment. Every time I went to the doctor, the doctors asked me to quit smoking. But because of the pressure of work, life, and the “deep-rooted” smoking habit, I still could not quit smoking.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2020, about 36.7% of men worldwide smoked cigarettes. Studies show that toxins from cigarettes can affect sperm development and function, negatively impact semen parameters and affect men's health in general.

Specialist Doctor I Vu Thanh Tung, Department of Andrology, Au Co Hospital said, in reality, infertility examination and treatment shows that many patients with infertility examination due to a sharp decrease in sperm quality are related to smoking.

“During the investigation, we discovered that the patient had been smoking for many years. In addition to the treatment regimen for each patient to improve the quality of live sperm, we required the patient to stop smoking completely. Many couples have had certain improvements in their infertility treatment journey,” said Dr. Tung.

Men who smoke are putting themselves at risk of infertility.

Men who smoke increase the risk of abnormal sperm quality, thereby increasing the risk of infertility. Not only affecting themselves, cigarette smoke also indirectly affects the woman living with them and increases the risk of infertility for women.

Not only does it affect the smoker, it also indirectly affects the woman living with her and increases the risk of infertility for the woman. In the photo: Doctor Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology - Infertility, consults on infertility for a patient at Au Co Hospital. Photo: Bich Nhan

Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology - Infertility, Au Co Hospital added that smoking has a big impact on sperm quality. "The most worrying thing is that patients who want to have children still refuse to give up smoking even though doctors have carefully advised and asked patients to stop smoking. Some people who really want to have children limit smoking while undergoing infertility treatment but do not stop smoking completely," said Dr. Ha.

Couples who come to see a fertility specialist are often married for many years but still have no children, and are desperate for children. Therefore, after 1-3 months, doctors will re-evaluate the sperm quality and if there is no improvement, they will perform more intensive interventions such as IVF or genetic testing to find the cause.

“For many people, changing their lifestyle and giving up smoking and drinking is not something that can be done overnight. While patients are eager to have children, we cannot wait for them to change and miss the “golden time” for treatment. Men who quit smoking at least three months before conception will have healthier sperm, thereby increasing the chance of fertilizing the egg and creating a healthy baby,” Dr. Thu Ha shared.

Doctor Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology - Infertility, Au Co Hospital shared: According to statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), infertility is increasing, of which the cause is due to men accounting for 40%, equivalent to the infertility rate in women, 10% is due to both men and women, 10% is of unknown cause.

Male infertility has many causes, which can be due to physical condition, lifestyle, and environment, of which smoking has a serious impact. Toxic substances in cigarettes negatively affect the quantity and quality of sperm, increase the rate of abnormal sperm, reduce sperm motility, making conception difficult.

Although there are many causes of infertility, doctors recommend that men should quit smoking to avoid reducing sperm quality. Erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation and sperm quality can improve after 2-12 weeks of stopping smoking.

Along with quitting smoking, men should have regular health check-ups, andrology check-ups when having physiological and reproductive health problems, and at the same time build a scientific lifestyle, exercise, keep a comfortable mood, and limit alcohol.

Bich Nhan

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/xa-hoi/202512/thuoc-la-thu-pham-tham-lang-khien-nhieu-cap-vo-chong-kho-co-con-8971f45/