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| Dina M. Jones, PhD, MPH, assistant professor of medical sciences at the University of Arkansas Fay W. Boothman Center for Public Health Tobacco Research, received a $733,000 K01 grant to conduct that research. Seeks to understand differences in smoking cessation among African American menthol cigarette smokers.
K01, a prestigious career advancement award, supports drug abuse research at the National Institutes of Health.
“It’s an honor to receive this grant,” Jones said. “This is a great opportunity. When you receive a K01, the evaluators consider the proposed training plan and research project to be of high quality and it means that you will receive significant support to advance your career. I am also the first person in the history of this college to receive the award. Factors that predict the real-time decline in smoking among African American smokers. I’m excited to investigate.
The UQuit study, which was funded in August 2022, will continue until 2027.
The project examines why African American cigarette smokers – more than 85% of those who use menthol cigarettes – are less likely to quit smoking than white smokers who use non-menthol cigarettes.
Individuals in the study lived in Little Rock or North Little Rock and ranged in age from 21 to 75 years old. Participants had to plan or be willing to quit smoking on a scheduled date within the next 30 days and have regular access to a smartphone.
Jones is using word of mouth, social media, community events, the college website and the Tobacco Center’s community partners to recruit African American menthol cigarette smokers for the study.
“African American smokers typically prefer menthol cigarettes. But this is not by chance,” she said. “Research has shown that tobacco companies have used various advertising, marketing and partnerships with black community leaders to deliberately push menthol cigarettes into the black community.”
Jones said the sedating, cooling taste, and smoking’s ability to help cope with stress, are the main reasons many African-American smokers continue to smoke menthol cigarettes.
Additionally, compared to non-menthol smokers — who are more likely to be white — African American menthol cigarette smokers smoke fewer cigarettes per day but have greater nicotine dependence.
The UQuit study follows participants before and after they try to quit smoking. Jones aims to assess how changes in participant mood, nicotine cravings, stress levels, and exposure to stressors such as discrimination and tobacco advertising affect recovery.
Jones’ goal is to use data from the UQuit study to develop interventions that increase successful smoking cessation among African American menthol cigarette smokers. A major goal of Jones’ work is to eliminate tobacco-related health disparities, as African Americans have disproportionately higher rates of tobacco-related disease and death, including cancer, than white smokers.
Key to that goal is researching people who can successfully quit smoking menthol cigarettes.
“Most African Americans do not know that menthol cigarettes are more difficult to quit than non-menthol cigarettes, and many prefer to quit on their own or with help,” Jones said. If we can find people in the study who are able to quit successfully and find out their behavior, their daily life and how they lead their lives once they quit, it can help our research greatly by comparing them with those who relapse.
UAMS is the state’s only health sciences university, with colleges of medicine, nursing, pharmacy, health professions and public health; Graduate School; a hospital; Main campus in Little Rock; Northwest Arkansas Regional Campus in Fayetteville; A statewide network of regional campuses; and seven institutions: Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, Jackson T. Stephen Spine and Neuroscience Institute, Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Psychiatric Research Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Translational Research Institute and Institute for Digital Health and Innovation. UAMS includes UAMS Health, which encompasses all of the UAMS clinical enterprise. UAMS is the only adult level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,047 students, 873 medical residents and fellows, and six dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer, with more than 11,000 employees, including 1,200 physicians who provide patient care at UAMS, its regional campuses, Arkansas Children’s, the VA Medical Center and Baptist Health. Visit www.uams.edu Or uamshealth.com. Contact us at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube Or Instagram.
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