Rising Cigarette Prices and Rising Obesity: Coincidence or Unintended Consequence?

40 Pages Posted: 25 May 2007 Last revised: 7 Jul 2008

See all articles by Charles Courtemanche

Charles Courtemanche

University of North Carolina (UNC) at Greensboro - Department of Economics

Date Written: May 23, 2008

Abstract

Economists have begun to debate if the rise in cigarette prices in the U.S. in recent decades has contributed to the nation's rise in obesity, reaching conclusions that are surprisingly sensitive to specification. I show that allowing for the effect to occur gradually over several years leads to the conclusion that a rise in cigarette prices is actually associated with a long-run reduction in body mass index and obesity. This result is robust to the different ethodologies used in the literature. I also provide evidence that indirect effects on exercise and food consumption may explain the counterintuitive result. I hypothesize that people who quit smoking experience a renewed interest in their health, increased confidence in their self-control, and a replenished stock of willpower, causing them to make healthier decisions in other areas as well.

Keywords: cigarettes, smoking, cigarette prices, cigarette taxes, obesity, body weight

JEL Classification: I10

Suggested Citation

Courtemanche, Charles, Rising Cigarette Prices and Rising Obesity: Coincidence or Unintended Consequence? (May 23, 2008). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=988374 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.988374

Charles Courtemanche (Contact Author)

University of North Carolina (UNC) at Greensboro - Department of Economics ( email )

Greensboro, NC 27402-6165
United States

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