Contact: C. Keith Haddock, PhD
(816) 235-1074
chaddock@cctr.umkc.edu

Cigarette Brand Switchers More Likely to Quit Smoking

Smokers who switch to lower tar or nicotine cigarettes for "health reasons" are more likely to subsequently quit smoking compared with those who continue to smoke regular cigarette brands according to researchers at the University of Memphis, University of Missouri-Kansas City, University of Minnesota and the US Air Force.

"Individuals who switch cigarette brands to reduce health risks may be a particularly approachable audience for safety and health promotion efforts," says C. Keith Haddock, PhD, director of the study.

The investigators studied nearly 32,144 Air Force recruits during their six weeks of basic training, during which time they were prohibited from using tobacco products. The recruits, whose average age was 19.7 years, completed a series of standard questionnaires designed to assess income and other demographic information as well as their previous smoking behavior.

About one-third (32 percent) of the recruits who had been smokers had previously switched to another brand of cigarettes hoping to reduce their health risks, the investigators found. A slightly greater proportion of these "switchers" (12.5 percent) had quit smoking one year following basic training compared with non-switchers (11.1 percent).

Switchers differed from non-switchers in other ways. Switchers were less dependent on nicotine, were more likely to have quit smoking previously for 24 hours or more, and were more confident they could remain abstinent from smoking than non-switchers. Switchers also reported a higher intake of fruits and vegetables and a lower intake of high fat foods and were less likely to drive fast and more likely to use seatbelts. The researchers report their findings in the current issue of Annals of Behavioral Medicine.

Researchers have previously debated whether "harm reduction" strategies, such as the use of nicotine patches or other cigarette-like devices may lure smokers into a false sense of safety and could actually lower the chances of eventual cessation. "This study suggests that, for smokers who believe (however accurately) they have reduced their health risks by switching cigarette brands, the likelihood of subsequent cessation is not diminished by harm reduction attempts," says Haddock.

The project was supported by a grant from the United States National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

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Annals of Behavioral Medicine is the official peer-reviewed publication of The Society of Behavioral Medicine. For information about the journal, contact Arthur Stone, PhD, (516) 632-8833.