Smoking Status and Dietary Changes Over Time among Low SES Women.
 
Janine Delahanty, Carlo C. DiClemente, Stephen Havas, & Patricia Langenberg
 
Corresponding Author:            
Janine Delahanty
Department of Psychology
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
1000 Hilltop Circle
Baltimore, MD 21250
Email: delahan1@umbc.edu
 
This study examined changes in smoking status in relation to changes in dietary behaviors and attitudes among women enrolled in the Maryland Food For Life (FFL) Program.  1,442 women recruited from Maryland WIC sites were classified according to changes in their smoking status from pre- to post-intervention.  Over the 6-month program approximately 57% of the women remained non-smokers (NS), 21.3% remained smokers (RS), 12.6% remained long-term abstainers (LTA), 3.8% quit smoking (QS) and 5.5% began smoking (BS).  Change scores were calculated to assess differences from pre- to post-intervention for dietary intake variables as well as dietary related stage of change, processes of change, and decisional balance.  BS women had lower incomes than LTA women (p < .001) and were less likely to be employed than NS women (p < .001).  BS women (M=27.3, SD=6.4) also had significantly lower body mass indices (BMI) than QS women (M=30.8, SD=7.3) at post-intervention (p < .001); however changes in BMI pre- to post-intervention were not significant (p < .10).  The FFL intervention produced significant shifts in dietary behaviors (fat, fiber & fruits and vegetables) and related stages, processes and decisional balance variables over time.  No significant interactions were found between smoking status shifts and intervention.  While the intervention produced desired changes across all smoking groups, women who began smoking during the trial responded least in terms of dietary behavior change and process of change variables.