Relationship of Smoking Status, Energy Balance, and Body Weight: Analysis of the Second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

The relationship between smoking status and body mass index weight/height² was evaluated, controlling for demographics, dietary intake, and physical activity. Subjects were 10,778 adult respondents from the Second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES II). Results indicate that never smokers and long-term quitters had similar relative body weights and that low-rate current smokers were not significantly different from never smokers. However, both medium- and high-rate current smokers weighed less than nonsmokers and low-rate smokers. When medium- versus high-rate smokers were contrasted, sex interacted with results. Specifically, weight-control properties of smoking were more pronounced in women than men. It is proposed that future research should more closely evaluate metabolic changes as a function of smoking status.