If you're a smoker and are trying to lose weight, you may be wondering if there's a link between your habit and your waistline. The truth is that there is one - but it depends on what kind of smoking you do. In this post, I am going to explore the details of how weight gain can happen for both smokers and nonsmokers alike.
There's a link between weight gain and smoking
A study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association found that smoking is associated with an increased risk of obesity and central obesity. The researchers looked at data from more than 17,000 adults over six years and found that smokers had a higher body mass index (BMI) than non-smokers. Additionally, those who smoked were more likely to be obese or have central obesity compared to their nonsmoking counterparts.
Central obesity is defined as excess fat around your abdomen which can lead to health problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease. Central obesity also increases your risk for type 2 diabetes since it leads to insulin resistance - a condition wherein cells fail to respond properly when they receive sugar from food/drink (you're probably familiar with this because it's typically what happens when you eat too much).
The link between weight and smoking differs by gender
Women who smoke are more likely than men to gain weight, according to a study published in the American Journal of Medicine. In addition, women who smoke have higher BMIs and waist measurements than nonsmokers.
Men who smoke have an increased risk of losing weight as well: The researchers found that smokers lost about 11 pounds more than non-smokers over two years (that's roughly 1 per cent per month).
Some of what you gain may be muscle, not fat
You may have heard that you can't lose weight if you're getting bigger muscles. If this were true, it would mean that the more muscle you have, the harder it is to lose weight.
But here's the truth: your body doesn't care about whether or not a particular part of it weighs less than another one does because all parts have equal value in terms of metabolic function. So even though a certain part of your body might weigh more than others (like fat), there's no reason why its density should affect how much energy gets consumed by that tissue over time - and thus how many calories are burned off during exercise or digestion.
Weight gain is different for smokers who quit before middle age than it is for those who quit later in life.
You've probably heard that smoking is bad for your health, but what about weight gain? Is smoking responsible for the extra pounds you might be carrying around? The answer is yes, but in a different way than you might think.
People who quit smoking before middle age are more likely to gain weight after leaving—but only if they're over 40 years old. In fact, the average person who quits cold turkey will gain about 10 pounds after making the switch (if they do it right). For those who stopped later in life and don't have much time on their hands to make sure their new habits stick around forever (which may not always be ideal), this number is reduced to half.
In terms of weight gain specifically: Your body needs time and resources to adjust to its new normal when it comes to being able to enjoy nicotine every day, so while there's certainly nothing wrong with adding some extra padding under your clothes now--not everyone must do this at once or else things could get ugly very quickly!
Weight gain after quitting may be associated with positive changes in metabolism
So what does this mean for you? If you've been trying to lose weight, but are struggling with the number on the scale, there may be a few reasons why.
One of those reasons could be that your metabolism has changed. After quitting smoking and gaining weight, many people report that their energy levels have increased and they feel healthier overall. This could be due to changes in hormones or blood sugar control (which I am going to discuss later).
Quitting smoking can lead to weight gain, but it's not always bad news
While weight gain is a side effect of quitting smoking, it's not always bad news. In fact, some people who have gained weight are actually healthier than those who were overweight before quitting smoking.
Weight gain can be caused by improved metabolism or other factors such as increased calorie intake and decreased physical activity levels (both of which occur when you quit). Your body needs time to adjust to these changes - so don't worry if you notice that after six months or so your waistline expands.
Conclusion
It’s easy to see why so many people think smoking and weight gain are linked. It’s not just what is said on TV or in movies, either: there are real-life examples of smokers who gain weight after quitting. But while some people may have trouble losing weight once they stop smoking, others have a harder time keeping it off even though they haven’t smoked at all. So if you are thinking about quitting smoking because you want to lose weight, remember that there is no right or wrong way to do this; success comes down solely to how well you follow through with the change in lifestyle changes made necessary by quitting smoking.