Podcast: Experts in Health: Disgust – why our bodies are designed to be repulsed

Dr Elisa Becker, Researcher in the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, discusses the role of disgust in protecting our health through the behavioural immune system, our relationship with eating meat and whether food packaging on animal products should go down the same path as cigarettes.

Study Shows Public Perception of E-Cigarettes vs. Cigarettes Harms Changed Sharply During EVALI Epidemic and COVID-19 Pandemic

A new study led by researchers at the American Cancer Society shows perceptions of electronic or e-cigarettes as being “more harmful” than cigarettes by adults in the United States more than doubled between 2019-2020 and perceptions of e-cigarettes as “less harmful” declined between 2018-2020.

Cigarette Smoke Reduces Aorta’s Ability to Store Elastic Energy, Impairs Blood Vessel Function in Mice

Article title: Structural and functional remodeling of the female Apoe−/− mouse aorta due to chronic cigarette smoke exposure Authors: Yasmeen M. Farra, Jacqueline Matz, Bhama Ramkhelawon, Jessica M. Oakes, Chiara Bellini From the authors: “Our data indicated that exposure to…

WashU Expert: FDA menthol ban would benefit Black, younger Americans

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s proposed ban on menthol-flavored cigarettes and all flavored cigars could be particularly beneficial for Black and young people, says an expert on tobacco control at Washington University in St. Louis.“Around 80% of adult Black smokers and more than half of people age 18-34 use menthol brands,” said Todd Combs, research assistant professor at the Brown School who works on the Advancing Science & Practice in the Retail Environment (ASPiRE) project, which uses agent-based modeling to test the potential impact of retail tobacco policies.

Smoking abstinence has little impact on the motivation for food

It’s sometimes thought that smokers who can’t light up are likely to reach for food in lieu of cigarettes. But new research from the University at Buffalo suggests that smoking abstinence doesn’t greatly affect the motivation for food.
The study, published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, used cues and actual money to learn how much smokers might spend for cigarettes, food and water during abstinence. The results provide new insights for how different systems control motivation and reward.