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Weight change after smoking cessation in general practice
R L Richmond1, L Kehoe, I W Webster
1School of Community Medicine, University of New South Wales, Kensington.
Objective:
To examine weight change among patients attending a smoking cessation program administered by general practitioners.
Design:
Body weight and smoking level were measured at the initial assessment and at a six-month follow-up visit. Pretreatment measures of demographic, attitudinal and smoking-related variables were examined for relationship to weight gain.
Participants:
A total of 235 patients who were part of a smoking cessation study in Sydney.
Main Outcome Measure:
Change in weight over six months.
Results:
Abstainers (n = 52) gained an average of 4.0 kg, significantly more than continuing smokers who gained an average of 1.2 kg. Among abstainers, only self-ratings of good health predicted weight gain.
Conclusions:
Results indicate that weight gain among general practice patients following smoking cessation is similar to that in other research settings.