Duluth researcher gets two big grants for work on smoking and stress
Smokers who have intense biological responses to stress such as a heightened heart rate are less likely to relapse than those who don’t. That’s one finding to come out of Mustafa al’Absi’s ongoing research regarding the relationship between stress and smoking relapses.By: Jana Hollingsworth, Duluth News Tribune
- Researcher at work
Smokers who have intense biological responses to stress such as a heightened heart rate are less likely to relapse than those who don’t.
That’s one finding to come out of Mustafa al’Absi’s ongoing research regarding the relationship between stress and smoking relapses.
Al’Absi, director of the Duluth Medical Research Institute at the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth campus, and an expert in stress research, has been awarded a $1.7 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to support a new phase of his research.
A second grant expected to be about $1.8 million from the National Institutes of Health will support a research program that addresses stress, tobacco addiction and obesity.
The common theme across all of al’Absi’s research is to explore processes in the brain and body that are responsible for “why when we are not feeling good, we do bad things,” such as overeating, smoking and drinking, he said. Finding those mechanisms, al’Absi said, will help break the cycle. He has been researching these subjects since 2004.
The research for smoking and stress involves studying chemical changes in the body during the beginning stages of quitting smoking. It will help scientists discover why people have a hard time quitting smoking, and why stress causes some to resume smoking.
“If we can (determine) how stress affects people with acute withdrawal, then we can invest in really helping people through those first few days,” al’Absi said, when the majority of people relapse.
When research began, it was thought that smokers who had a high response to stress, such as increased cortisol, a stress hormone, and increased heart rate and blood pressure would be more likely to relapse.
“But that’s where science can teach you something,” al’Absi said. “We did the study and found completely the opposite. People that did not show a healthy vigorous response to stress were the ones that had the worst time trying to quit.”
Part of the research involved having participants do something considered stressful, like speaking in front of a group of people to gauge their bodies’ reactions.
The research will help discover medications and treatment for people who might be more susceptible to begin smoking again during stressful situations.
“Wouldn’t it be great for a physician … to tailor interventions to predicted problems?” al’Absi asked. “The impact from Duluth is already showing in how often people cite our work.”
The research is relevant and timely, said George Trachte, associate dean for research at the medical school.
“Smoking cessation is an incredibly important issue for health in the U.S.,” he said.
Volunteers — smokers and nonsmokers — who want to participate in the study are asked to call the medical school’s behavioral science lab at (218) 726-8896.
“If we can (determine) how stress affects people with acute withdrawal, then we can invest in really helping people through those first few days.”
Mustafa al’Absi, director of the Duluth Medical Research Institute at the University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth campus
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