Background: Studies have shown that individuals who smoke menthol cigarettes are less likely to quit smoking and more likely to relapse during a quit attempt. The current study investigated menthol cigarette use as a potential predictor of smoking cessation outcomes in a sample of treatment-seeking smokers.
Methods: This is a secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial of low-dose naltrexone augmentation of nicotine replacement designed to examine smoking cessation and postcessation weight gain in weight-concerned smokers.
Results: Analyses revealed that menthol use predicted lower quit rates. Among menthol smokers (N = 61), 13% were abstinent at week 26, and among nonmenthol smokers (N = 105), 30% were abstinent (Wald = 4.15, p = .04; odds ratio [OR] = 2.47; 95% CI = 1.04-5.90). Further, menthol smokers who quit smoking gained significantly more weight at week 26 (M = 14.87 lbs, SD = 9.08; t(37) = -2.22, p = .03) than nonmenthol smokers who quit (M = 7.95 lbs, SD = 7.53).
Conclusions: Menthol cigarette use has not typically been evaluated as a predictor of smoking cessation outcomes, but emerging evidence suggests that consumption of menthol may make cessation more difficult. This study adds to the literature supporting the claim that smoking menthol cigarettes can have adverse effects on smoking cessation efforts and on other cessation-related outcomes, such as postcessation weight gain.