Relationship Between Stages of Change and Advice from Family and Medical Physicians to Quit in Japanese Smokers

produces significant health benefits because smoking is a major preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. However, smoking cessation is the most difficult item in lifestyle modification. The concept of stage of change is a core element of the transtheoretical model of behavior change and is widely used in smoking cessation interventions1,2. According to this model, current smokers are classified in three stages of change or readiness to quit smoking ; precontemplation, contemplation, and preparation3. Smokers who are planning to quit within the next 30 days are classified in the preparation stage. Previous research based on nine samples by five countries (Finland, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States) showed that a higher prevalence of smoking was associated with a higher proportion of smokers in the precontemplation stage4. Increasing the proportion of smokers in the preparation stage is important to promote smoking cessation. The experience of smoking-related symptoms or diseases, and advice from a private medical physician to quit smoking are frequently given as reasons for successful smoking cessation5. Although similar reasons are given for the transition to preparation stage from contemplation or preparation stage, it is not clear whether this supposition is correct or not. The current study aims to elucidate the relationship between stages of change and advice to quit smoking from a family member and a medical physician.