Experts believe declining numbers of female smokers over the
past few decades may have had a direct impact on rising weight
problems as fewer people suppress their appetites with
cigarettes. And piling on the pounds can lead to health problems
including diabetes, heart attacks and strokes. The authors, led
by Dr Laurence Gruer from NHS Health Scotland, reviewed the
cases of 3,613 women who never smoked. The group, recruited in
Scotland between 1972 and 1976 when aged 45-64, was monitored
for 28 years. The results showed those who never touched tobacco
were more likely to be overweight or obese than their fellow
smokers - 60% against 40% - with the extra weight acting as an
"important contributor" to premature death. The highest rate of
obesity among non-smokers was found in low income groups,
according to the study published in the British Medical Journal.
Almost 70% of women in this category were overweight or obese.
Dr Gruer said: "You can certainly assume that if you are obese,
you are more likely to die o