Effect of brief exercise on urges to smoke in men and women smokers

Introduction Although smoking urges have been demonstrated to vary by gender and also be influenced by exercise, it is unknown if exercise has a differential effect on smoking urges by gender. This study aimed to explore gender-specific effects of an acute bout of exercise on cessation-related symptoms in men and women smokers during acute abstinence. Methods We enrolled smokers (≥ 5 cigarettes/day) who were 18–40 years old for a study on exercise and smoking behavior. Participants abstained from smoking for at least 3 h, prior to measurement of their maximal oxygen consumption tested, which was the acute bout of exercise. Prior to and after the exercise, participants completed the Questionnaire of Smoking Urges – Brief and the Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale. Results Participants (n = 38; 61% women) were, on average, 30.0 ± 0.9 years old and smoked 13.0 ± 0.8 cigarettes/day. All measured aspects of cessation-related symptoms significantly improved after the exercise in both men and women. In women there was a significant decline in anticipated relief from negative affect after the exercise (women: − 0.45 ± 0.20, p = 0.0322; men: − 0.41 ± 0.26, p = 0.1312). In men there was a significant decline in the intention to smoke after the exercise (men: − 0.77 ± 0.23, p = 0.0053; women: − 0.66 ± 0.37, p = 0.0909). Conclusions An acute bout of exercise reduced smoking urges in both men and women smokers during an acute state of abstinence. Additional research is needed to replicate these observations in a larger, more diverse sample, and to explore the implication of these observations on cessation.