Lots of different things can increase your risk of premature labor. Some of them are:
- Smoking
- Being very overweight or underweight before pregnancy
- Not getting good prenatal care
- Drinking alcohol or using street drugs during pregnancy
- Having health conditions, such as high blood pressure, preeclampsia, diabetes, blood clotting disorders, or infections
- Being pregnant with a baby that has certain birth defects
- Being pregnant with a baby from in vitro fertilization
- Being pregnant with twins or other multiples
- A family or personal history of premature labor
- Getting pregnant too soon after having a baby
- Women in their 30s or older that take fertility drugs increase the risk of premature babies and increase the number of children born