A May 5, 2005 article by Ed Edelson describes a study suggesting that those who quit smoking may suffer some lung-impairing weight gain, but the article quotes ACSH's Dr. Gilbert Ross explaining that the problems caused by the weight gain are easily offset by the health gains from quitting:
Smokers who want to quit should not be deterred by this, said Dr. Gilbert L. Ross, medical director of the American Council on Science and Health in New York.
"The negative impact on lungs and lung function of weight gain by smokers who quit is way, way overshadowed by the negative impact of smoking on lung function as well as every other part of the body," Ross said.
Some people who quit don't gain weight, he added, "but even in those who do, the manifold benefits of quitting are incredibly greater than any minor adverse effect of some quitters gaining weight."