Smoking More Common in People With Chronic Pain

MONDAY, April 20, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- People who experience chronic pain tend to use cigarettes and electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) at higher rates than those without chronic pain, according to a study published in the May issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.Julianna L. Lazzari, from the Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina, and colleagues examined national trends in exclusive cigarette smoking, exclusive e-cigarette use, and dual use (2014 to 2023) among 195,632 U.S. adults with and without chronic pain participating in the National Health Interview Survey.The researchers found that exclusive cigarette smoking prevalence was significantly higher and declined more slowly among individuals with chronic pain (17.7 percent in 2014 and 13.1 percent in 2023) versus those without (12.5 percent in 2014 and 7.5 percent in 2023). Both exclusive e-cigarette use and dual use prevalence were higher in the chronic pain group across all years when adjusting for age, sex/gender, and race/ethnicity. Increases in exclusive e-cigarette use were similar among individuals with (1.4 percent in 2014 and 5.6 percent in 2023) and without (1.2 percent in 2014 and 4.5 percent in 2023) chronic pain. A decline similarly was seen in dual use prevalence among individuals with (4.6 percent in 2014 and 2.7 percent in 2023) and without (2.3 percent in 2014 and 1.5 percent in 2023) chronic pain."People get caught in this really vicious cycle where pain is driving smoking, smoking makes the pain worse, which makes it really hard to quit," coauthor Jessica Powers, from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, said in a statement.Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required).Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Smoking More Common in People With Chronic Pain

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