Skip to main content

Sustained Smoking Cessation Tied to Improved Mental Health

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com.

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, June 1, 2023 -- Smoking cessation sustained for at least 15 weeks is associated with improved mental health outcomes, according to a study published online May 31 in JAMA Network Open.

Angela Difeng Wu, from the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, and colleagues assessed changes in mental health following smoking cessation using three confirmatory coprimary analytical approaches. The analysis included 4,260 participants from 16 countries with smoking cessation sustained for at least 15 weeks, and anxiety and depression measured at 24 weeks.

The researchers found that after adjusting for demographics and baseline variables, smoking cessation was associated with a decrease in scores for both anxiety (−0.40 point) and depression (−0.47 point) versus continuing smoking. In propensity score-adjusted models, smoking cessation was similarly associated with reduced scores for anxiety (β = −0.32) and depression (β = −0.42). Findings persisted in planned sensitivity and subgroup analyses, with larger effect sizes seen in people with a history of mental illness.

"In this cohort study of people with and without psychiatric disorders, we found that smoking cessation was associated with improved mental health outcomes," the authors write. "Findings like these may reassure people who smoke and their clinicians that smoking cessation likely will not worsen and may improve mental health."

Abstract/Full Text

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Parental E-Cigarette Use Linked to Increase in Pediatric Atopic Dermatitis

TUESDAY, May 28, 2024 -- Parental electronic cigarette use is associated with increased odds of pediatric atopic dermatitis (AD), according to a research letter published online...

E-Cigarette Use After Smoking May Up Risk for Lung Cancer

WEDNESDAY, May 22, 2024 -- Former cigarette smokers who use electronic cigarettes may have a higher risk for lung cancer than those who do not vape, according to a study presented...

Use of Electronic Cigarettes Tied to Earlier Age at Onset of Adult Asthma

FRIDAY, May 17, 2024 -- Past 30-day electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) use among adults is associated with earlier ages of asthma onset, according to a study published...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.