Nicotine dependence and lifetime amount of smoking in a population sample.

AIM To determine how the age at starting smoking, any quit attempts and the single nicotine dependence criteria are related to the lifetime amount of smoking. METHODS A population-based sample of 4075 18 to 64-year-olds drawn at random in northern Germany was used. It included 836 former and 1601 current smokers. They were interviewed face-to-face at their homes with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview which provides a nicotine dependence diagnosis (DSM-IV). Also included was the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence. RESULTS The rates of smokers who started smoking at a young age, who had five or more quit attempts in the past and who fulfilled the single nicotine dependence criteria increased with the lifetime amount of tobacco smoked. CONCLUSION Nicotine dependence may be a main impeding factor against efforts to decrease smoker rates.