The researchers documented the quitting success of 462 people who tried to give up alcohol and cigarettes simultaneously. All participants received intensive alcohol and smoking cessation treatment.
Up to a year and a half later, researchers surveyed the participants and asked about their alcohol and tobacco habits.
"Among those who were depressed, the odds of drinking, the next time you checked in with them six months later, were 1.5 times greater than the odds of drinking for individuals without significant depressive symptoms," said lead researcher Molly Kodl in a study published in the January edition of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.
"With significant depression, people report mood that is down in the dumps, loss of interest in things they used to enjoy, low energy, appetite changes and difficulty concentrating," Kodl said.
While depression seems to lessen the chances of alcohol abstinence, the study did not find a similar association for tobacco dependence, the study found.
