Research
Hormonal
Existing FDA-approved smoking cessation medications (varenicline, nicotine replacement therapy, and bupropion alone) provide only modest attenuation of post-cessation weight gain and do not eliminate it.
Standard smoking cessation drugs like patches, gum, or varenicline will help you quit, but they are not designed to stop you from gaining weight afterward. Expect modest weight changes, but do not rely on them to maintain your weight.
StrongRefutesHIGH confidence
Unfortunately, the medications currently available for smoking cessation have relatively small effects on post-cessation weight gain (<1 kg at 1 year).
Why this rating
Supported by multiple meta-analyses and systematic reviews cited in the text.
Source
Smoking, Obesity, and Post-Cessation Weight Gain: Neurobiological Intersection and Treatment Recommendations
Angela Golden et al. · Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare · 2025
DOI 10.2147/jmdh.s509971
narrative_reviewCited 3×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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