August 10, 2026

A new study, reported in the British medical journal BMC Public Health, has found that people who were both smokers and drinkers drank less alcohol when they tried to quit smoking. The study could not pinpoint the reason for this, but it found a definite correlation.

It was previously understood that people who tried to quit smoking felt emptiness and were more likely to drink more if they were drinkers too. But this study, covering 6300 smokers in Britain, who were trying to quit the habit, found the reverse.

The researchers also said that the study suggested that people who drank less were more likely to be successful in quitting smoking. Conversely, those who drink heavily and are also heavy smokers are less likely to quit smoking.

Since the researchers were unable to establish the reason, they said that further research was required to find out whether attempts to quit smoking was preceded by attempts to reduce drinking or vice versa.

But one thing is clear – in people who both smoke and drink, there is a definite correlation in both the habits and giving up one has an impact on the other.