One third of all men globally smoke some form of tobacco and that 21.6% of American men smoke cigarettes. More recently, researchers have begun to explore the relationship between cigarette smoking and reproductive health.
Cigarette smoking, one of the main causes of preventable morbidity and mortality, has a multitude of well-known side effects. The relationship between cigarette smoking and infertility has been studied for decades; however, large-scale, population-wide prospective studies are lacking.
The effects of smoking on assisted reproduction and in vitro fertilization outcomes are noted. The consequences of smoking while pregnant on future fertility as well as the outcomes of second-hand smoke are analyzed. The current evidence suggests that men should be advised to abstain from it in order to improve reproductive outcomes.
It is strongly correlated with an increased risk of erectile dysfunction, with some studies showing a three-fold increase in risk for male smokers. The more a man smokes, the more likely it is that he’ll suffer from erectile dysfunction.
Erectile dysfunction isn’t the same as infertility. However, if sexual performance is difficult, getting pregnant isn’t going to be easy. The good news is that quitting smoking does seem to improve performance. One study found that after 6 months of smoking cessation, a little more than 50% reported improved sexual performance
Although a large volume of retrospective data exists examining smoking and the effects on semen analysis parameters and IVF outcomes, large-scale, population-wide studies on the effects on natural pregnancies are lacking. Nevertheless, the majority of the evidence points to the fact that men with infertility, or those having difficulty conceiving, should quit to optimize their chances for successful conception.
