Heavier smokers gain more weight post-quitting

Smokers, who have severe nicotine dependence, are more likely to gain weight when they try quitting, according to a study.

Even with nicotine replacement therapy, individuals can gain substantial amounts of weight when they quit smoking.

Koji Hasegawa and colleagues from Kyoto Medical Center, Japan, studied weight gain patterns in individuals who successfully abstained from smoking after nicotine replacement therapy at a clinic.

They found that higher scores on the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND), implying more severe dependence, correlated with the amount of weight participants gained when they quit.

Other factors that were significantly associated with post-smoking weight gain were higher serum triglycerides and lower HDL-cholesterol levels at the start of therapy and the number of cigarettes participants reported smoking each day.

The study has been published in the open access journal PLOS ONE.