If you view cigarettes as the key to keeping you in your skinny jeans then you’re much less likely to try and give up.
A study of 10,000 smokers, including Australians, found that women who think smoking helps with weight maintenance are less likely to try and kick the habit.
The study found people who were worried about weight gain were much less likely to take notice of anti-smoking campaigns or care if cigarette prices went up than smokers who didn’t consider it an issue.
"We found that concerns about weight are a significant barrier to quitting among … female smokers who believe smoking helps them manage weight," says lead author Ce Shang from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Studies show 80 percent of smokers put on weight when they give up, with the average quitter gaining about 5kg in the year after quitting.
There are a number of reasons smokers are prone to weight gain — not only does nicotine speed up metabolism, plus act as an appetite suppressant, but many people reward their quitting efforts with food. Some experts suggest that eating food is also mimicking the hand-to-mouth action of smoking.
“Smoking affects your blood sugar, which is why some people like to have a cigarette after a meal and get a sweet tooth after they quit,” Professor Renee Bittoun, head of the University of Sydney’s Smoking Research Unit, told ninemsn.
The study participants answered three surveys between 2002 and 2007 about their attempts to quit smoking, how anti-smoking campaigns influenced them, plus whether they agreed with the statement that smoking helps control weight.
They found that US and UK women who think weight gain occurs after quitting weren’t likely to try quitting if cigarette prices increased, whereas people who didn’t think smoking and weight gain went hand-in-hand were more likely to try quit if the prices went up.
Interestingly, the researchers found no significant relation between quitting attempts and beliefs about weight gain in the Australian respondents.
Nonetheless, Professor Bittoun says any smokers who are concerned about weight gain from quitting ought to focus on the fact they will get much fitter.
“Your breathing is better and oxygen uptake is better so you can do more and lose weight that way,” she says.
“You can do the stairs better and do the run better and that will help you lose a bit of weight.”
At any rate, Professor Bittoun says people needn’t stress over a small amount of weight gain.
“You are not going to die from your minimal weight gain, but the risk of dying is very high from smoking due to things like heart disease and lung disease,” she says.
Quit Victoria advocates stocking your fridge with healthy foods and minimising exposure to junk food, plus increasing incidental exercise to avoid weight gain when quitting.
Shang says quit smoking programs may also need to address women’s concerns about weight gain.
"Policymakers should take weight concerns into account to enhance the effectiveness of existing policies that promote quitting smoking," she says.
The study was published in the journal Tobacco Control.