THE INDEPENDENT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SMOKING STATUS AND BODY-FAT - ANANALYSIS OF ADULT FEMALES

The relation between body fat and smoking-status among females has not been clearly identified. Self-reported and biometric data from 714 wo rking adult females were examined. Body-fat measures were compared acr oss five smoking-status groups with and without control for confoundin g variables. Body-fat levels for the subjects in the moderate smoker g roup (those who smoked 10 to 20 cigarettes per day) were significantly lower than those for all other groups except the heavy-smoker group. This difference remained after control for confounding variables (P=.0 1). Moderate smokers have lower body-fat than do all other smoking gro ups and may be more likely to gain weight upon cessation.