The benefits of quitting ciggies far outweigh the potential weight gain risks

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-04-28 01:00

Australia; NSW; VIC

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Potential weight gain is often the trade-off when trying to quit smoking, but Aussie researchers suggest that the health implications of gaining a few extra pounds are far outweighed by the benefits of putting down the ciggies. The researchers studied a nationally representative sample of 16,663 Australians between 2006 and 2014 and found that people who quit smoking had a lower risk of death than those who continued smoking. Quitters also did not show a higher risk of major chronic diseases such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) regardless of the amount of weight they gained after quitting. The team recommends interventions to help quit smoking should include messages about the safety of some weight gain after quitting.

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conference: JAMA Network Open

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Western Sydney University, The University of Melbourne

Funder: The HILDA project was initiated and is funded by the Australian Government Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and is managed by the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research.

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