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Smokers
More Likely to Quit if Spouse Does
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) -
With a little help from their spouses, even the most stubborn
of smokers can quit, study findings show.
Researchers found that middle-aged smokers married to other smokers--generally
among the most unwilling to kick the habit--are more likely to quit
when both spouses make the attempt together.
Past research has highlighted
the importance of a supportive spouse during a smoker's quit attempt.
The new study shows that for both men and women, having a smoking
spouse join them in the attempt may boost the odds of its success--regardless
of other factors that affect smokers' ability to kick the habit,
such as age, income and education.
Middle-aged smokers married
to the same may be the toughest to convince of the benefits of
giving up smoking, having long resisted the numerous health arguments
for quitting. But a spouse's willingness to quit, along with growing
concerns about health in old age, may be what some of these smokers
need, according to the study authors, led by Dr. Melissa M. Franks
of Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan.
They reported their findings
in a recent issue of the Journal of Aging and Health.
In the study, the researchers
followed nearly 1,400 married smokers in the US between 1992 and
1994. Of the 450 married pairs of smokers in 1992, the large majority
were still smoking 2 years later. But in just over 5% of these
couples, both spouses quit during the study. And, the researchers
report, having a spouse who quit had a "large effect" on the odds
that a smoker, man or woman, would quit.
According to Franks and
her colleagues, such combined quit efforts may help by removing
"smoking cues" from the home or by boosting spouses' support for
each other. And a spouse who's trying to quit may also pester
his or her smoking spouse more.
However, the researchers
point out, although this study found a "potential incentive" for
married smokers to quit, it also found that most of these smokers
remain stubborn in their habit.
SOURCE: Journal of Aging
and Health 2002;14:336-354.
Reference
Source 89
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