So You Want to Be a Father? First You Need to Be a Quitter.

If you aspire to be a dad, quit smoking. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, men who smoke cigarettes have a lower sperm count and motility and increased abnormalities in sperm shape and function. Exposure to secondhand smoke can also impact the time it takes for a woman to get pregnant and present health risks for pregnant mothers and their unborn children.

On Fathers Day, future dads are encouraged to quit to protect themselves and their families from the dangerous health effects of tobacco use and secondhand smoke exposure.
Smoking can reduce fertility in men, especially in heavy smokers where sperm function can be greatly impacted, says Dr. Charles Brown, Chairman of the Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco-Free Living (TFL) Steering Committee.

Reduced fertility is one of the many harmful effects that smoking has on the human body, and another good reason why men shouldn’t smoke.

Nearly 25 percent of Louisiana men are smokers. According to The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, this year approximately 700 children in Louisiana will lose their dads to smoking-related disease—the number one preventable cause of death in the U.S. But smoking doesnt just hurt smokers; it hurts non-smokers too. Many parents dont realize how much secondhand smoke impacts the health of those around them, says Brown.

For pregnant mothers, secondhand smoke increases the risk for miscarriage, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), low birth weight babies and premature birth. Recent studies also indicate that a pregnant mothers exposure to secondhand smoke (at work, home, restaurants, bingo halls, etc.) can be just as harmful to her fetus as if she smoked herself. Its not just the smoker who is at risk, adds Brown.

For Louisianas nearly 400,000 male smokers, help to conquer a smoking addiction is only a phone call away. The Louisiana Tobacco Quitline, 1-800-QUIT-NOW, offers free, confidential cessation counseling to Louisiana residents (ages 15 and older) 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Certified quitline counselors help callers develop quit plans, set target dates for quitting, and when appropriate, refer callers to local group counseling opportunities offered by the American Lung Associations Freedom From Smoking (FFS) clinics.

Freedom From Smoking cessation programs offer smokers an eight-session group therapy class that uses a positive behavior-change approach to teach smokers how to quit. The group classes help smokers develop a quitting strategy, understand nicotine addiction and the use of nicotine replacement products, deal with recovery symptoms, weight control, and manage stress through relaxation. The FFS classes also teach assertiveness techniques and a variety of relapse prevention strategies for staying off cigarettes.

Quitting is the most important step a future dad can take to improve his health and the health of his family, says Greg David, TFL Regional Coordinator for the Lake Charles area. The Louisiana Tobacco Quitline, 1-800-QUIT-NOW, (1-800-784-8669) is free and accessible for anyone seeking help to quit smoking. A smokers chance of quitting greatly increases when they receive support from family and friends combined with professional help, adds David.

The Louisiana Tobacco Quitline, 1-800-QUIT-NOW, is operated by the American Cancer Society and funded by The Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco-Free Living, an affiliated program of the Louisiana Public Health Institute. To learn more about Freedom From Smoking clinics, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW.

The Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco-Free Living provides statewide coordination of existing tobacco control initiatives, funds innovative community programs for tobacco control, and develops statewide media campaigns to help reduce the excessive burden of tobacco use on the states resources and improve the overall health and quality of life. TFL also funds the Louisiana Tobacco Quitline, 1-800- QUIT-NOW. For more information on creating a smoke-free environment where you live, work and play, visit www.mytfl.org. For help quitting, call 1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669).