New Smoking Study

I got my Bachelor's degree in Psychology just a few years ago, and between the Research & Statistics and the Psychological Testing courses, it was drummed into me what a correlational study can and cannot reveal. My Psychological Testing professor has a special passion for research and its correct interpretation that she passed on to a lot of us in the class.

Here's an example: A study finds a direct correlation between sunburn and ice cream consumption. When ice cream eating goes up, so does sunburn. When sunburn goes down, so does ice cream eating. This doesn't mean that eating ice cream causes sunburn. Just that they go up and down together. The cause of both could be (and is in this case) something completely outside the two factors being studied: Sunny weather.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I saw this article on the correlation between smoking and "metabolic syndrome." Metabolic syndrome is the name given to the excess belly fat that leads to heart disease.

The article opens with a statement that is impossible to determine with a correlational study: "Exposure to cigarette smoke raises the risk among teens of metabolic syndrome." This makes it sound as though the cigarette exposure is actually causing the metabolic syndrome.

Unfortunately, this study may be looking at an ice-cream/sunburn relationship, when in fact the cause of both may be a completely overlooked factor.

One of the essential parts of interpreting a study is to ask, "What other factors could be affecting the results?" From reading the article, this question doesn't seem to have been asked. Instead, the article states, "Weitzman said it is not clear what it is about smoking that appears to make teenagers more susceptible to metabolic syndrome." The assumption is: Smoking is bad. Metabolic syndrome is higher around smoke. Therefore smoking causes metabolic syndrome. We just don't know how yet.

So, what other factors could there be?

I read a study a long time ago (before I got my Psych. degree) that said that smoking was much higher in people with an apple shape (they carry their fat at or above the waist--like the metabolic syndrome people) than in people with a pear shape (they carry their fat below the waist).

So, body shape correlates to smoking, which can mean that heredity may play a role in the tendency to smoke.

Environment may also play a part in both smoking and body fat. If family members smoke and are overweight, they may pass on to their children, through their behavior and family dynamics, the behavioral tendency to smoke and overeat.

"Addictive personality" is recognized in psychological circles, and may also be the common thread in the families where teenagers show higher rates of obesity and smoking. Whether the addictive personality is from heredity or environment or both is not clear.

This article has important (though not groundbreaking by any means) information showing the correlation between smoking and unhealthy belly fat in teens. The real message is not simply, "Beware of smoke in your environment!" It is to recognize whatever risk factors you may have, whether that's smoking or belly fat or something else, and do what you can to minimize or eliminate them.