Effects of Smoking and Smoking Cessation on Dietary Habits of a Swiss Urban Population

Objectives: To assess whether current smokers eat differently than never smokers and the relation of smoking cessation to dietary change.

Design: Population-based survey from 1993-1997.

Setting: The Bus Sante 2000, epidemiologic observatory of Geneva, Switzerland.

Subjects: A representative sample of 2301 men and 2306 women resident of Geneva, Switzerland.

Results: In both genders, compared to never smokers, current heavy smokers (> or = 20 cigarettes/d) consumed daily less total vegetables proteins (P <0.03), carbohydrates (P<0.0001), saccharose (P<0.01), fibers (P < 0.0001), beta-carotene (P < 0.001), fruit (P < 0.0001) and vegetables (P < 0.04), but they drank more alcohol (P < 0.0001) and more coffee (P < 0.005). In addition, female current smokers ate less energy (P < 0.4), complex carbohydrates (P < 0.002), cereals (P < 0.003), vegetables (P < 0.0001) and less iron (P < 0.02). The diet of ex-smokers tended to become more similar to that of never smokers. When longer duration of smoking cessation increased, the consumption of total carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates increased (P < 0.01 and P < 0.06), and alcohol decreased (P < 0.07) in both genders.

Conclusions: As in other Western countries, the diet of Swiss smokers appears less healthy than that of never smokers in both men and women, while smoking cessation has beneficial aspect on the quality of the diet. Current smoking appears to have an even stronger effect on the diet of women than on the diet of men.