What the warning labels and after-school specials on smoking are not telling the female consumer may be surprising.

Nancy Bogle, public health educator for DeKalb County, says smoking increases the risk of all forms of cancer, including breast and cervical cancers for women.

“There is evidence that women smokers face a variety of ailments: A higher risk of heart disease when taking contraceptive pills, early menopause and cervical cancer,” Bogle said.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), women are especially at a greater risk for reproductive problems such as fertility and menstrual problems.

Women who smoke before or during pregnancy can put their infant in danger of premature rupture of membrane, low birth weight and pre-term delivery. The risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and growth retardation of infants is also increased.

“Babies whose mothers smoked can have a higher risk of SIDS, middle-ear disease, respiratory illnesses, developing asthma in those previously unaffected and suffering asthma attacks in those already affected,” Bogle said.

According to recent studies by the CDC, the damage done to a smoking woman’s menstruation cycle can include painful or irregular menstruation and secondary amenorrhea, or the absence of menstruation.

Jackie Ryan, junior special education major, says she is now more aware of the dangers smoking has on her body.

“I have been smoking since I was 14, and I’ll be 21 in January,” Ryan said.

“Everyone, like me, knows the dangers of smoking and I’ve learned more troubles that will catch up to me in my future. I also will not be smoking when I am pregnant and don’t plan to smoke around my children because smoking is my decision and I shouldn’t punish others with my cancerous ways.”

It has also been proved that women smokers are more likely to experience menopausal symptoms at a younger age than non-smokers.

According to the CDC, smoking while on hormonal birth control methods can also be harmful to a woman’s health. Older women who smoke and use birth control dramatically increase the risk of having a first-time heart attack, blood clots, strokes, gallbladder disease, liver tumors and vision problems.