Tobacco Consumption and Quality of Life

Smoking is the main cause of illness and death worldwide. It is a serious public health problem and a habit that has consequences for the individual’s quality of life (QoL). The aim of the study was to evaluate the QoL of patients undergoing tobacco cessation treatment in a multidisciplinary program in Brazil.

The current retrospective study was performed on patients undergoing tobacco cessation treatment in a multidisciplinary program of the Institute of Science and Technology, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Brazil, São José dos Campos, from March to December 2015. The 36-Item Short Form Survey (SF-36), Fantastic Lifestyle, Self-Reporting (SRQ-20), Medical Outcomes Study (MOS), and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory Questionnaires (STAI s/t) were administered to 71 participants who were selected according to the inclusion criteria.

The smoking habit affected the QoL of the user, especially in the physical functioning, social aspect, vitality, and mental health domains of the SF-36 survey and the Fantastic Lifestyle Questionnaire. It also influenced depression and the social support of the patient as we could see by the application of the SRQ-20 questionnaire and by the MOS questionnaire, respectively.

We could see that there is a negative relationship between smoking and QoL and that smoking influences depression and the social support of the user. These findings highlight that effective tobacco cessation interventions are crucial. Healthcare providers and policymakers must prioritize tobacco control to reduce the burden of tobacco-related diseases and improve community well-being.