WEIGHT CHANGE AFTER SMOKING CESSATION IN GENERAL-PRACTICE

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 relationsh ip 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 aver age of 4.0 kg, significantly more than continuing smokers who gained a n average of 1.2 kg. Among abstainers, only self-ratings of good healt h predicted weight gain. Conclusions: Results indicate that weight gai n among general practice patients following smoking cessation is simil ar to that in other research settings.