The Influence of Smoking Cessation on the Prevalence of Overweight in the United States
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: The proportion of U.S. adults 35 to 74 years of age who were overweight increased by 9.6 percent for men and 8.0 percent for women between 1978 and 1990. Since the prevalence of smoking declined over the same period, smoking cessation has been suggested as a factor contributing to the increasing prevalence of overweight. METHODS: To estimate the influence of smoking cessation on the increase in the prevalence of overweight, we analyzed data on current and past weight and smoking status for a national sample of 5247 adults 35 years of age or older who participated in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, conducted from 1988 through 1991. The results were adjusted for age, sociodemographic characteristics, level of physical activity, alcohol consumption, and (for women) parity. RESULTS: The weight gain over a 10-year period that was associated with the cessation of smoking (i.e., the gain among smokers who quit that was in excess of the gain among continuing smokers) was 4.4 kg for men and 5.0 kg for women. Smokers who had quit within the past 10 years were significantly more likely than respondents who had never smoked to become overweight (odds ratios, 2.4 for men and 2.0 for women). For men, about a quarter (2.3 of 9.6 percentage points) and for women, about a sixth (1.3 of 8.0 percentage points) of the increase in the prevalence of overweight could be attributed to smoking cessation within the past 10 years. CONCLUSIONS: Although its health benefits are undeniable, smoking cessation may nevertheless be associated with a small increase in the prevalence of overweight.
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At the individual level, favorable changes in one area of wellness may lead to unfavorable changes in others (eg, quitting smoking may lead to weight gain), which would average out at the group level.
“At the individual level, favorable changes in one area of wellness may lead to unfavorable changes in others (eg, quitting smoking may lead to weight gain [52]), which would average out at the group level.”
From Personal Health Technologies in Employee Health Promotion: Usage Activity, Usefulness, and Health-Related Outcomes in a 1-Year Randomized Controlled Trial (2013) · cites this paper as [52]
The annual rate of weight gain in the general population is generally less than 1 kg/year.
“as the annual rate of weight gain generally is <1 kg/year (9)(10)(11)”
From Influence of Weekend Lifestyle Patterns on Body Weight (2008) · cites this paper as [11]
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- Authors
- Flegal, K. M., Troiano, R. P., Pamuk, E. R., Kuczmarski, R. J., & Campbell, S. M.
- Affiliations
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US)
- Venue
- New England Journal of Medicine
- Publisher
- Massachusetts Medical Society
- Published
- 1995-11-02
- Volume
- 333
- Issue
- 18
- Pages
- 1165-1170
- ISSN
- 0028-4793 (ISSN-L)
- 1533-4406
- OpenAlex
- W2056163274
- Cited by
- 482
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 23 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 31 · 2013: 21 · 2012: 27
- FWCI
- 7.74
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- New England Journal of Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Smoking Behavior and Cessation
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Diabetes, Cardiovascular Risks, and Lipoproteins
- Keywords
- smoking cessation, overweight, weight gain, obesity prevalence, adults, NHANES III, physical activity, alcohol consumption, parity
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aged, Female, Health Surveys, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Obesity, Smoking, United States, Weight Gain, Body Mass Index, Prevalence, Odds Ratio, Smoking Cessation
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