Research
Hormonal
Nicotine replacement therapy (specifically gum) and bupropion significantly delay or reduce post-cessation weight gain compared to placebo.
Use nicotine gum or bupropion if you are worried about gaining weight after quitting. These treatments help reduce the amount of weight you gain and increase your chances of staying smoke-free.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Nicotine replacement – in particular nicotine gum – appears to be effective in delaying post-cessation weight gain. Compared with placebo, mean body weight gain at the end of treatment was significantly lower in patients receiving short-term bupropion 300 mg d-1 who had been continuously abstinent
Why this rating
Based on controlled clinical trials and reviews.
Source
Smoking cessation and weight gain
Claudia Filozof et al. · Obesity Reviews · 2004
DOI 10.1111/j.1467-789x.2004.00131.x
narrative_reviewCited 525×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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- Smoking cessation causes significant weight gain (mean 1-5.9 kg at 1 year) primarily through increased caloric intake, decreased resting metabolic rate, and increased lipoprotein lipase activity in subcutaneous fat.Good
- Smoking cessation improves insulin sensitivity and cardiovascular risk factors despite associated weight gain.Good
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