Objective To investigate change in mental health after smoking cessation compared with continuing to smoke. Design Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. Data sources Web of Science, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, Embase, and PsycINFO for relevant studies from inception to April 2012. Reference lists of included studies were hand searched, and authors were contacted when insufficient data were reported. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies Longitudinal studies of adults that assessed mental health before smoking cessation and at least six weeks after cessation or baseline in healthy and clinical populations. Results 26 studies that assessed mental health with questionnaires designed to measure anxiety, depression, mixed anxiety and depression, psychological quality of life, positive affect, and stress were included. Follow-up mental health scores were measured between seven weeks and nine years after baseline. Anxiety, depression, mixed anxiety and depression, and stress significantly decreased between baseline and follow-up in quitters compared with continuing smokers: the standardised mean differences (95% confidence intervals) were anxiety −0.37 (95% confidence interval −0.70 to −0.03); depression −0.25 (−0.37 to −0.12); mixed anxiety and depression −0.31 (−0.47 to −0.14); stress −0.27 (−0.40 to −0.13). Both psychological quality of life and positive affect significantly increased between baseline and follow-up in quitters compared with continuing smokers 0.22 (0.09 to 0.36) and 0.40 (0.09 to 0.71), respectively). There was no evidence that the effect size differed between the general population and populations with physical or psychiatric disorders. Conclusions Smoking cessation is associated with reduced depression, anxiety, and stress and improved positive mood and quality of life compared with continuing to smoke. The effect size seems as large for those with psychiatric disorders as those without. The effect sizes are equal or larger than those of antidepressant treatment for mood and anxiety disorders.

The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), a World Health Organization treaty, has now been ratified by over 165 countries. However there are concerns that implementing the Articles of the treaty may prove difficult, particularly in the developing world. In this study we have used qualitative methods to explore the extent to which the FCTC has been implemented in Ghana, a developing country that was 39th to ratify the FCTC, and identify barriers to effective FCTC implementation in low income countries.

This paper updates the evidence base and key recommendations of the Health Education Authority (HEA) smoking cessation guidelines for health professionals published in Thorax in 1998. The strategy for updating the evidence base makes use of updated Cochrane reviews supplemented by individual studies where appropriate. This update contains additional detail concerning the effectiveness of interventions as well as comments on issues relating to implementation. The recommendations include clarification of some important issues addressed only in general terms in the original guidelines. The conclusion that smoking cessation interventions delivered through the National Health Service are an extremely cost effective way of preserving life and reducing ill health remains unchanged. The strategy recommended by the guidelines involves: (1) GPs opportunistically advising smokers to stop during routine consultations, giving advice on and/or prescribing effective medications to help them and referring them to specialist cessation services; (2) specialist smokers' services providing behavioural support (in groups or individually) for smokers who want help with stopping and using effective medications wherever possible; (3) specialist cessation counsellors providing behavioural support for hospital patients and pregnant smokers who want help with stopping; (4) all health professionals involved in smoking cessation encouraging and assisting smokers in use of nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) or bupropion where appropriate. The key points of clarification of the previous guidelines include: (1) primary health care teams and hospitals should create and maintain readily accessible records on the current smoking status of patients; (2) GPs should aim to advise smokers to stop, and record having done so, at least once a year; (3) inpatient, outpatient, and pregnant smokers should be advised to stop as early as possible and the advice recorded in the notes in a readily accessible form; (4) there is currently little scientific basis for matching individual smokers to particular forms of NRT; (5) NHS specialist smokers' clinics should be the first point of referral for smokers wanting help beyond what can be provided through brief advice from the GP; (6) help from trained health care professionals specialising in smoking cessation such as practice nurses should be available for smokers who do not have access to specialist clinics; (7) the provision of specialist NHS smokers' clinics should be commensurate with demand; this is currently one or two full time clinics or their equivalent per average sized health authority, but demand may rise as publicity surrounding the services increases.

E-cigarettes are becoming increasingly popular, but data on the potential risks of long-term use are sparse. This cross-sectional study conducted in the United Kingdom examines the potential risks ... Background: Given the rapid increase in the popularity of e-cigarettes and the paucity of associated longitudinal health-related data, the need to assess the potential risks of long-term use is ess...

Background:Health warnings on cigarette packages are among the most common means of communicating the health risks of smoking. However, few studies have evaluated the impact of package warnings on consumer knowledge about tobacco risks.Objective:The aim of the current study was to use nationally representative samples of adult smokers from the United States (USA), the United Kingdom (UK), Canada (CAN), and Australia (AUS) from the International Tobacco Control Four Country Survey (ITC-4) to examine variations in smokers’ knowledge about tobacco risks and the impact of package warnings.Methods:A telephone survey was conducted with 9058 adult smokers from the following countries: USA (n = 2138), UK (n = 2401), CAN (n = 2214) and AUS (n = 2305). Respondents were asked to state whether they believed smoking caused heart disease, stroke, impotence, lung cancer in smokers, and lung cancer in non-smokers. Respondents were also asked whether the following chemicals are found in cigarette smoke: cyanide, arsenic and carbon monoxide.Findings:Smokers in the four countries exhibited significant gaps in their knowledge of the risks of smoking. Smokers who noticed the warnings were significantly more likely to endorse health risks, including lung cancer and heart disease. In each instance where labelling policies differed between countries, smokers living in countries with government mandated warnings reported greater health knowledge. For example, in Canada, where package warnings include information about the risks of impotence, smokers were 2.68 (2.41–2.97) times more likely to agree that smoking causes impotence compared to smokers from the other three countries.Conclusion:Smokers are not fully informed about the risks of smoking. Warnings that are graphic, larger, and more comprehensive in content are more effective in communicating the health risks of smoking.