Dieting and smoking initiation in early adolescent girls and boys: a prospective study.
OBJECTIVE
This analysis tested the relation between dieting frequency and risk of smoking initiation in a longitudinal sample of adolescents.


METHODS
From 1995 to 1997, 1295 middle school girls and boys participated in a nutrition and physical activity intervention study. The prospective association between dieting frequency at baseline and smoking initiation 2 years later was tested.


RESULTS
Compared with girls who reported no dieting at baseline, girls who dieted up to once per week had 2 times the adjusted odds of becoming smokers (odds ratio = 2.0; 95% confidence interval = 1.1, 3.5), and girls who dieted more often had 4 times the adjusted odds of becoming smokers (odds ratio = 3.9; 95% confidence interval = 1.5, 10.4).


CONCLUSIONS
Dieting among girls may exacerbate risk of initiating smoking, with increasing risk with greater dieting frequency.
Austin
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SB
Division of Adolescent Medicine, Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, JB-335, Boston, MA 02115, USA. austin_s@hub.tch.harvard.edu
Gortmaker
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SL
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D002648:Child; D004038:Diet, Reducing / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology*