Mechanisms Linking Alcohol Use and Smoking Relapse Risk
Principal Investigator
|
Associate Professor (Research) |
Funding Source
NIAAA
Description
This project involves two studies in which alcohol is administered to heavy drinking smokers in a laboratory setting to examine how drinking increases craving for cigarettes and decreases the ability to resist smoking. These studies also will examine for whom alcohol consumption is most strongly associated with smoking, focusing on the potential effects of learning and memory, as well as genes. Results of this study will advance understanding of how alcohol use increases the risk of smoking relapse and can inform efforts to increase smoking cessation rates among the relatively high proportion of smokers who drink heavily and are at especially high risk for head, neck, and other cancers.