A small study published in the September 2007 issue of AIDS Patient Care and STDs reports that people’s HIV-related symptoms and quality of life can improve when they quit smoking.

In the study, Damon J. Virdine, PhD, and his associates at the University of Texas in Houston offered 77 HIV-positive smokers different kinds of assistance with smoking cessation. Participants completed surveys about their HIV-related symptoms and health-related quality of life before quitting and 90 days after their first attempt to quit. Approximately 85 percent of the participants attempted to quit smoking during the study. Up to 36.8 percent of the smokers were reported being smoke-free for at least 30 days.

Researchers found that the longer a person remained smoke-free, the more likely they were to report an improvement in HIV-related symptoms—such as fatigue, weight loss, mental health issues, and various body pains. Improvements in health-related quality of life, including perceptions of mental, physical and emotional well-being, were also reported among those who quit.