My husband smoked marijuana and experimented with other recreational drugs when he was in college. What effect could this, or his current health status and lifestyle, have on a fetus?
Although some residue from marijuana and certain other drugs has been found in semen, there is no evidence that their presence at the time of conception is harmful to a fetus. However, there is evidence that secondary smoking is potentially harmful to both the expectant mother and her fetus, so if your husband is a smoker, your doctor might recommend counseling for smoking cessation. Other potentially significant aspects of the father’s health include the presence of any genetically determined condition that could be passed on to a baby, a history of sexually transmitted disease, or an abnormality in the genitalia that might effect his fertility.
