Contributor: Don Stader, MD Educational Pearls: On average, smoking reduces life expectancy by 13.2 years for men and for 14.5 years for women Nicotine is highly addictive and has both stimulant and calming effects Having a newborn can be a strong motivator to quit so take advantage and educate new (or expecting) parents to the risks of smoking and benefits of quitting Smoking has been associated with sudden infant death Biggest predictor of children smoking is seeing their parents smoking Side effects of smoking that can be discussed with patients are cataracts/blindness, cancers (lung and throat), coronary artery disease, early menopause, osteoporosis/fractures, and impotency References Haug S, Schaub MP, Schmid H. Predictors of adolescent smoking cessation and smoking reduction. Patient Educ Couns. 2014;95(3):378-383. doi:10.1016/j.pec.2014.03.004 Mays D, Gilman SE, Rende R, Luta G, Tercyak KP, Niaura RS. Parental smoking exposure and adolescent smoking trajectories. Pediatrics. 2014;133(6):983-991. doi:10.1542/peds.2013-3003 Anderson TM, Lavista Ferres JM, Ren SY, et al. Maternal Smoking Before and During Pregnancy and the Risk of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death. Pediatrics. 2019;143(4):e20183325. doi:10.1542/peds.2018-3325 Summarized by Jackson Roos, MS4 | Edited by Erik Verzemnieks, MD