depression

the bottom line

Depression and smoking are linked to each other, both in adults and in teenagers. People who are depressed are more likely to smoke; smokers are more likely to be depressed; and depressed people have a tougher time of it than other people do when they try to quit smoking.

explanation

Researchers have long thought that being depressed increases the likelihood that a teenager will start to smoke. It probably does happen that way for some young people, but recent research indicates that the relationship may also work the other way around. A teenager may start to smoke first and be more likely to become depressed later partly as a result of it.

In one study, researchers interviewed several thousand teenagers on two occasions a year apart. They found that teens who were smokers at the time of the first interview were more likely than nonsmokers to be depressed a year later. Depression couldn't have caused these young people to smoke because they started smoking first and became depressed afterward. Instead, it's likely that smoking contributed in some way to causing depression, perhaps through some action of nicotine or other tobacco components. Nicotine is known to affect certain brain chemicals called neurotransmitters, and neurotransmitters play a role in depression.

quitting

There is a link between smoking and depression that can factor into an attempt to quit smoking: people who suffer from depression are more likely to be addicted to cigarettes than those who are not depressed, and smokers who experience more intense depression have a harder time quitting.

It is also possible that quitting smoking may precipitate a relapse of dpression in smokers with a history of depression. Thus prospective quitters with a history of depression might be well advised to seek medical and psychological monitoring when attempting to quit smoking.