NICOTINE GUM DOSE AND WEIGHT-GAIN AFTER SMOKING CESSATION

The authors examined weight gain in 79 abstinent cigarette smokers dur ing treatment with placebo or with 2 mg or 4 mg of nicotine gum. Resul ts indicated that nicotine gum suppressed weight gain in a linear fash ion with increasing nicotine dose. At 90 days postcessation, placebo g um users gained 3.7 kg, 2-mg gum users gained 2.1 kg, and 4-mg gum use rs gained 1.7 kg. Assessment of nicotine replacement by means of pre- and postcessation salivary cotinine levels revealed that smokers who r eplaced a greater percentage of their baseline cotinine levels during treatment gained less weight. Percentage of baseline cotinine replaced remained related to weight gain after the number of pieces of gum use d was controlled. Implications for smokers hoping to minimize postcess ation weight gain are discussed.