Fighting bad habits is no easy task. What if the solution was to do it … together? This is revealed by a study presented on April 12 at EuroPrevent 2019, the annual congress of the European Association of Preventive Cardiology (EAPC) of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) which was held in Lisbon (Portugal). According to research, couples trying to quit smoking together would be almost six times more likely to succeed than alone.
“Smoking cessation interventions should include couples as much as possible to achieve a smoke-free household”, valued in a press release Magda Lampridou, author of the Imperial College London study (United Kingdom). A total of 222 smokers at high risk of cardiovascular disease or who had suffered a heart attack were recruited. Their partners also participated in the research: 99 current smokers, 40 former smokers and 83 non-smokers.
Active support
The smokers and their spouses have completed four different preventive cardiology programs. They were asked about their current use, their smoking history and their previous attempts to quit. For 16 weeks, nicotine substitutes (patches and chewing gum) were offered to them. In one of the four programs, participants could choose to take a smoking cessation drug.
At the end of the study, 64% of patients and 75% of their partners were abstinent, compared with none and 55% at the start, respectively. The odds of quitting after 16 weeks were significantly higher (5.83 times) in pairs who tried together compared to participants who attempted to do so alone.
“Quitting smoking can be a lonely endeavor. People feel left out when they avoid tobacco breaks at work or avoid social occasions, says Magda Lampridou. In addition to this, there are symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. Partners can distract from each other (walks, movies) and by encouraging alternative activities (eating healthy food, meditating). Active support works better, rather than constantly harassing someone to do something. “
In addition, according to the researcher, if the effect was not particularly significant in this study, previous research has shown that ex-smokers can positively influence the attempts of their other half. On the contrary, there is a significant risk in non-smokers to adopt the habit of their spouse.
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