Quitting smoking 'reduces anxiety'
Key points
- Smokers who successfully quit feel less anxious afterwards - despite the belief that smoking relieves stress, researchers say.
- The British Journal of Psychiatry study followed nearly 500 smokers attending NHS stop smoking clinics in England.
- It found a "significant" decrease in anxiety levels among the 68 smokers who had quit after six months.
- The effect was greater among those who had mood and anxiety disorders than those that smoked for pleasure.
Smokers who successfully quit feel less anxious afterwards - despite the belief that smoking relieves stress, researchers say.
The British Journal of Psychiatry study followed nearly 500 smokers attending NHS stop smoking clinics in England.
It found a "significant" decrease in anxiety levels among the 68 smokers who had quit after six months.
The effect was greater among those who had mood and anxiety disorders than those that smoked for pleasure.
The researchers - drawn from several universities including Cambridge, Oxford and Kings's College in London - said the findings should be used to reassure smokers attempting to quit that concerns about increased anxiety levels were unfounded.
Withdrawal
However, the study did suggest that a failed attempt to seemed to increase anxiety levels by a modest degree among those who had mood disorders.
For those who smoked for pleasure a relapse did not alter anxiety levels.
The researchers said it seemed that smokers - particularly those that smoked to cope - were more likely to have a cigarette soon after waking up to stave off withdrawal symptoms, which include anxiety.
By quitting, they removed these repeated episodes of anxiety and felt less anxious as a result, they added.
It comes as the government has launched a graphic anti-smoking advertising campaign, which features a cigarette with a tumour growing from it, and as many smokers prepare to quit as part of their new year resolutions.
###
BBC News
Written and revised by
Gerald Hurowitz, M.D.
Our doctors write and review articles for accuracy and keep them up to date.
health.am provides general information, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your own health.
Explore health topics
More in this topic
Mental Health →
NewsSize, connectivity of brain region linked to anxiety level in young children, Stanford study shows
Prolonged stress and anxiety during childhood is a risk factor for developing anxiety disorders and depression later in life. Now, Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have shown that by measuring the size…
21 November 2013
NewsNeuroscientists determine how treatment for anxiety disorders silences fear neurons
Excessive fear can develop after a traumatic experience, leading to anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder and phobias. During exposure therapy, an effective and common treatment for anxiety disorders,…
2 November 2013
NewsFake Xanax anxiety pills from China seized in Zurich
Customs agents have seized one million fake anti-anxiety pills in transit at Zurich airport, Swiss officials say. The four-crate shipment was on its way from China to Egypt, the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products…
