Well surveys show us that the leading reason women give for not quitting smoking or for resuming smoking is that they did not want to gain weight. Nicotine inhibits the natural weight set-point and artificially lowers the person's weight. So that when a person quits smoking, their weight will rise to it's natural set-point level. Just like with dieting, it may even raise beyond the previous level to compensate for the dangers of a lower body weight. What these articles seems to be telling women is that they might as well keep smoking because it would be just as dangerous if they quit smoking yet gained weight.
Women have enough pressure from prejudice and the media to lose weight.
It is amazing how the prejudice against weight completely distorts such important information.