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. 2001 Mar;91(3):446–450. doi: 10.2105/ajph.91.3.446

Dieting and smoking initiation in early adolescent girls and boys: a prospective study.

S B Austin 1, S L Gortmaker 1
PMCID: PMC1446587  PMID: 11236412

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: This analysis tested the relation between dieting frequency and risk of smoking initiation in a longitudinal sample of adolescents. METHODS: From 1995 to 1997, 1295 middle school girls and boys participated in a nutrition and physical activity intervention study. The prospective association between dieting frequency at baseline and smoking initiation 2 years later was tested. RESULTS: Compared with girls who reported no dieting at baseline, girls who dieted up to once per week had 2 times the adjusted odds of becoming smokers (odds ratio = 2.0; 95% confidence interval = 1.1, 3.5), and girls who dieted more often had 4 times the adjusted odds of becoming smokers (odds ratio = 3.9; 95% confidence interval = 1.5, 10.4). CONCLUSIONS: Dieting among girls may exacerbate risk of initiating smoking, with increasing risk with greater dieting frequency.

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Selected References

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