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Insulin secretion may explain weight gain after smoking cessation
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Changes in insulin secretion could be related to increased weight gain following smoking cessation, according to data presented at the 2012 Joint 15th International Congress of Endocrinology and 14th European Congress of Endocrinology Meeting.
Previous studies have examined metabolic changes following smoking cessation, but have not successfully tested the details. The current presentation was awarded an ESE Young Investigator Award.
Marietta Stadler, MD, researcher for the Hietzing Hospital in Vienna, Austria, and colleagues administered a 3-hour, 75-g oral glucose tolerance test and performed body composition measurements on healthy long-term smokers aged 28±2 years who were enrolled in a smoking cessation program, while they were still smoking.
Stadler and colleagues found and increase in body weight (4%) and fat mass (22%) after 3 months of not smoking. At 6 months, body weight increased 5%, while fat mass increased 35%, Stadler reported.
Researchers discovered that smoking cessation leads to a transient increase of first phase beta-cell secretion in response to glucose, fasting insulin resistance and Neuropeptide-Y plasma levels, they said.
Additionally, increased beta cell secretion at 3 months was less notable in patients who ultimately quit smoking for at least 6 months, compared with those who relapsed after 3 months in the program.
Due to this response, Stadler and colleagues believe the alterations could contribute to cravings for carbohydrates and weight gain following smoking cessation, they said.
“The more we can understand the biological basis for the phenomenon, the higher our chances of being able to control it,” Stadler said.
Further studies will be conducted to match a group of non-smokers of the same age and body mass with that of the patients involved in the current study to see if beta cell function is altered in those who are still smoking.
For more information:
- Stadler, M. Abstract#OC12.3. Presented at: The Joint 15th International Congress of Endocrinology and 14th European Congress of Endocrinology Meeting 2012; May 5-May 9; Florence, Italy.
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.