i was wondering what y'all think about the myth that smoking leads to weight loss?? we see it all the time in the media--models, actresses, etc smoke and there are always jokes about smoking making you look cool and lose weight but does it actually do anything weight-wise??

i no longer smoke regularly--i limit myself to rare social occasions (usually hookah or flavored type tobacco that is more like drinking than just smoking cigarettes because you smoke)...

when i was smoking on a daily basis, i did it because all my friends smoked and i was generally stressed out all the time... but in the back of my mind, i thought to myself, "maybe this will make me thinner too..." i even partially attributed my going down a pant size to smoking... even though i had already started eating better--diet sodas, skim milk, more veggies, etc.

i know smoking is horrible for you and have thus quit but now my beloved "skinnier" jeans are fitting tighter and looking more bulgy... it's irritating... i try to remind myself that i have let a few things slip--diet wise--and that's why i have gained a little weight back but, again, the back of my mind is saying, "this didn't happen when you were smoking" GRR

i know cigarettes suppress appetite but i have NEVER smoked a cigarette while hungry and had it satiate or even lessen my hunger... i feel like that idea only applies to chain smokers who are contstantly smoking (instead of eating)...

anyway... that's my take on the whole smoking thing... i was just wondering if anyone else had had similar thoughts/experiences and what you all think about the issue...

I read a study recently that said the smoking/weight thing was in part a myth. Many smokers are indeed thinner, but they have lower muscle mass as smoking induces the body to burn muscle. So while they may weigh less, they have more body fat and their metabolism is being trashed.

The weight gain/loss isnt from any magic metabolism boost from smoking, its because a lot of people who quit smoking dont know what to do with their hands & mouths and in goes food. Also, since smoking dulls the senses, many people have a greater interest in food since it tastes better.

yah i thought about smoking to help lose weight, but in the long run, it'll make it harder to breathe and harder to exercise and i wanna be able to exercise so cigs arent teh way to go.

It has been proven cigarette smoking can cause serious health problems. And cigarettes are very expensive, I am a former smoker and I couldn't afford to buy cigarettes , now. I am sooo much healthier since I no longer smoke.

I had quit a couple of months ago, but am struggling again.

I know a lot of young, thin, glamorous models/actresses smoke, BUT in real life, most of the female smokers I see are old (maybe just old-looking?), wrinkled, haggard, and OVERWEIGHT.

Yup, I tend to associate smoking with white trash, as all my trashy neighbors smoke!

I used to smoke while intoxicated and I still sometimes smoke "little cigars" (Black & Mild, etc). It IS a very expensive habit, though I have to admit that when my weight wasn't budging, I thought about taking up smoking again and even bought a pack to smoke every time I was hungry. It didn't work out so well, as smoking definitely did NOT surpress my appetite... infact, it sometimes made me hungrier!

Besides, even if it DOES surpress your appetite, who wants their muscle mass to obliterate itself just to weigh less? (Well... I used to not care what my muscle vs. fat mass was as long as I looked "thin" or "skinny" but later I found out that was called an eating disorder )

I've seen overweight smokers. So why didn't it work for them? But mostly what I've seen are those who try to quit smoking gaining weight because they replace the constant hand to mouth movement with something else to put in their mouth...like food.

I smoked from the time I was 16 until 43....I am 53 now...haven't smoked in 10+ years...my mom smoked from 16 until death a few months ago at 72...all I can say is the last 20 years of her life were pretty lousy from smoking....

If you smoke to lose weight I guarantee you that you will...but I also guarantee you will fit real nicely in that coffin way sooner than you wanted!

I never got seriously started, thank goodness. My mom used to smoke (she quit 20-some y ago) and sometimes when I was little and she'd leave a butt unattended in an ashtray while she'd answer the phone I'd sneak a puff. All that did was make me wonder what possible pleasure anyone derives from firing up a wad of dried leaves and sucking in the hot gases

For that matter, I never developed much of a palate for coffee either. On those rare occasions when I do drink it I have to sweeten and flavor it beyond recognition

I started smoking as a teen because the rumor was that it kept your weight down. It did at first - because you got buzzed when you first lit up and it made you dizzy. I realized later on that was simply my body crying no, no, stop poisoning me.

A long time ago when you could smoke freely - in your home, in your car, in public - it was easy to pick up a cigarette instead of food. Now with the restrictions in most places you have to go clear to the end of town to light up and if you've smoked long enough, you are out of breath by the time you get there so it's not even worth the walk.

Over time whatever tiny weight control effects cigarettes might have had at the start are quickly lost. Eventually I gained weight even though I was smoking I faced the triple whammy of fat, smoking AND could not exercise hard because of being out of breath or coughing.

I did finally quit smoking. I did gain weight. And it wasn't because I was stuffing food in or that food tasted better. In fact, once I quit - in anticipation of gaining I got very serious about working out and eating healthy. But they say you would have to gain 100 pounds to equal the negative effects that smoking brings to the table.

Please don't start smoking. It entices you at first but it's a horrible habit, plays games with your head - particularly if you have an addictive type of personality. It's expensive and little by little, they are restricting smoking more and more until the only way you'll be able to light up is in the dark, cobwebby corner of your basement.

It's not glamourous and it won't get you or keep you skinny.

Smoking for weight loss makes even less sense than voluntarily ingesting a tapeworm for the same person. At least a tapeworm could be killed and removed, there's no way to undo the damage smoking does. As effective as cancer is at producing weight loss, I think I'll pass.

Unfortunatly, I am a smoker. I didnt ever think I'd make me lose weight. I started smoking for this monologue I performed, my character was very depressed and I thought it was fitting that she'd be a smoker. I performed the monologue and never stopped smoking. I didnt lose weight. Probably cause if I was hungry I CRAVED food, not a cigarrette. Anyway, I'm starting to cut back on the smoking. Now, a pack will last me a week and not 2 days, like before. I plan to go cold turkey as soon as I get to my goal weight and maintain it for a month.

to anyone who has quit smoking: How did you do it?

From what I understand, it is quitting smoking that is the trigger for eating more. Because smokers can be fidgety and looking for something to do with thier hands and thier mouth. So the story is quitting smoking will make you gain weight. I think it is true, but that is just my guess.

I don't think smoking has anything to do with weight loss. I do think people gain weight when they stop smoking because they are always wanting something in their mouth. Or at least thats how it seems to me. When I want to eat a cig does not replace food lol.