Smoking and vaping can have these detrimental effects on fertility, doctors warn

Smoking tobacco products has been proven to have negative effects on fertility, according to research.

That includes vaping in addition to traditional cigarettes.

For those who are concerned about fertility or looking to start a family, experts recommend refraining from smoking and vaping.

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Courtney D. Lynch, PhD, a doctor of maternal fetal medicine at The Ohio State University College of Medicine, confirmed with Fox News Digital that it has been "well-established" that smoking has an "adverse impact on both natural and medically assisted conception."

"While the human data on vaping and fertility are sparse, animal data suggest that vaping is also problematic," she said. "Nicotine is a well-established reproductive and developmental toxicant."

Smoking and vaping exposes the embryo to certain harmful compounds, according to Lynch.

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The nicotine in vapes and cigarettes is known to impair the functioning of the cilia in the fallopian tubes, she noted.

This then impairs the "proper transport" of the embryo to the uterus when attempting pregnancy, and it also increases the risk of a tubal or extra uterine pregnancy, according to Lynch.

Smoking and vaping can also alter gene expression, the doctor added.

Theodore Wagener, PhD, director of the Center for Tobacco Research and co-leader of the Cancer Control Program at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, referred to scientific literature that suggests smoking "clearly negatively effects fertility."

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In an animal study published by the National Institutes of Health, vaping was shown to exert "harmful effects" during the implantation process of pregnancy, potentially leading to "various pathologies in the offspring."

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"In women, smoking damages egg quality and quantity while accelerating egg loss, leading to earlier menopause and increased risks of fertility treatment failure, miscarriage and menstrual irregularities," Wagener told Fox News Digital.

For men, smoking can impair fertility by reducing sperm count and quality, damaging DNA and "disrupting testosterone production, which can result in erectile dysfunction," Wagener noted.

"For vaping, the scientific literature is limited, but it may similarly impact hormone levels, cause DNA damage and increase erectile dysfunction," he added.

Lynch and Wagener agreed that quitting all nicotine and tobacco products could help improve fertility while limiting exposure to environmental smoke.