Adam Leventhal appointed to FDA committee on tobacco products
Adam Leventhal, PhD, professor of preventive medicine and psychology and Director of the USC Institute for Addiction Science and Health, Emotion & Addiction Laboratory (HEAL), has been appointed to the FDA’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee.
The USC Experts on the Front Lines of the Opioid Epidemic
Nearly 400,000 people in America died from opioid overdose from 1999-2017. USC experts believe they can stem the tide.
The Hidden Harms of Racial Bullying
A U.S. News analysis shows a link between bias-related harassment and risky health behaviors by victims, which can contribute to dire consequences later in life.
What Makes People Smoke? Disadvantages in life, USC study shows
The more disadvantages you face, the more likely you are to smoke — and have difficulty quitting, according to a new USC study in JAMA Internal Medicine that sheds light on groups that are resistant to anti-smoking efforts.
High-Nicotine E-Cigs May Be Gateway to Smoking for Teens
Teens who vape e-cigarettes with higher nicotine levels are more likely to start smoking conventional cigarettes soon after, new research shows.
E-cigarettes Use in Youth Considered Emerging Public Health Concern
The 2016 U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on e-cigarette use among youth and young adults comprehensively reviews the public health issue of electronic cigarettes and their impact on our nation’s young people.Over the last half century, the U.S. Surgeon General has released 32 comprehensive reports outlining the impact of tobacco use on this nation’s health and well-being. The 33rd report, which addresses e-cigarette use among youth and young adults, adds significant data and analysis to the science of this important public health issue.
Teen vaping assoicated wtih future cigarette use
High school students who vape at the start of a school year are more likely to become heavy smokers by the end, compared to their peers who don’t vape, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Jungeun Olivia Lee, Ph.D., MSW Socioeconomic Status and Behavioral Health
Nov 14th, 3:30 pm – 5:00 pm
SSB Room 301
2011 N. Soto Street
Dr. Matthew Kirkpatrick awarded the Young Psychopharmacologist Award
Congratulations to Dr. Kirkpatrick for receiving the Young Psychopharmacologist Award at APA’s 2016 Division 28 Psychopharmacology and Substance Abuse Convention!
HEAL Research used in TV Spot
An recent publication by HEAL in JAMA was featured in a Television spot by the California Department of Public Health.
Teen vapers have easy time buying supplies online
Research has shown that online purchasing of liquid nicotine and electronic cigarettes is largely unregulated, as many teens have been buying such products through online vendors. Director of USC-HEAL, Dr. Adam Leventhal, explains that this is highly dangerous because teens who are purchasing the e-cigarettes may have younger siblings who could be at risk of swallowing the liquids, which can be deadly.
WIRED Interview on Vaping
WIRED magazine writer, Brent Rose, interviews Dr. Adam Leventhal regarding the potential health effects of vaping.
ACS Relay For Life of USC Event
Dr. Adam Leventhal will be speaking at the American Cancer Society Relay For Life event on Sunday, April 3rd at 10:00am. The event is open to the public, and will take place on April 2-3 at Cromwell Track & Field.
How to be a Prolific Addictions Researcher and Maintain Balance in your Life
The Society of Addiction Psychology (SoAP) Live Podcast with Dr. Adam Leventhal, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at the University of Southern California. He directs the USC Health, Emotion, and Addiction Laboratory (HEAL), a research group that studies the intersection of mental health, addiction, and health behavior, with interests spanning psychopharmacology, developmental psychopathology, and epidemiology of addiction.
The Sociopharmacology of Tobacco Addiction: Implications for Understanding Health Disparities
This article released in the February issue of nicotine and tobacco research by HEAL director Adam Leventhal on Sociopharmacology selected as a editors choice article and accompanied by a editorial by Dr. Brian Hitsman.
Teenagers Who Try E-Cigarettes Are More Than Twice as Likely to Start Smoking
There is a lot of debate about the use of e-cigarettes, however longitudinal studies have provided evidence that adolescents who use e-cigarettes have an increased likelihood that they will then progress to smoking traditional cigarettes, as suggested by results from surveys following high school students in Hawaii conduced by Wills and colleagues. Such results are consistent with those from USC-HEAL lab’s study conducted in Los Angeles High Schools.
Junhan Cho, Ph.D. Parent and Youth Dopamine D4 Receptor Genotypes Moderate Multilevel Contextual Effects on Youth’s Risk Behavior
Jan 22nd, 3:45 pm – 5:00 pm
SSB2 Room 2904
2011 N. Soto Street
Teen Smokers May Be Hard-Wired to Crave Cigarettes
Teen smokers might crave nicotine in part because their brains respond differently than adults to seeing people light up.
Teens with Fewer Mental Health Issues Turn to E-Cigarettes
Adolescents with moderate emotional health problems do not smoke, but they may vape, USC-HEAL study finds. Surveyed teens who picked up vaping had emotional and behavioral problems that fell midway between smokers and teens who neither vaped nor smoked.
Genes May Make It Harder for Some to Quit Smoking
A story by the American Cancer Society featured Adam Leventhal, PhD, associate professor and director of USC HEAL, on the role genetics play in tobacco addiction. “We need to have a better understanding of the biology of tobacco addiction, particularly in this high-priority population,” Leventhal said.
Healthy Debate
New Beginnings: Better Vagal Maneuvers for Arrhythmias and eCigarettes in Adolescents
Teens who use e-cigarettes may be transitioning to tobacco products, research shows
A multi-university team led by Keck Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) researchers has found, for the first time, that using or “vaping” of electronic cigarettes is associated with a propensity to start smoking cigarettes or other, harmful tobacco products.
The University of Southern California – Institute for Addiction Science (IAS), Tobacco Center for Regulatory Science (TCORS), and HEAL co-host a series of talks from front-line addiction researchers. See below for the full list of 2019-2020 speakers.
Michael Chaiton, Ph.D., scientist at the Ontario Tobacco Research Unit and Associate Professor at University of Toronto.
Date: 8/30/19 @ 12:30pm in SSB 301. Talk flyer.
Stephen Patrick, M.D., Director of the Vanderbilt Center for Child Health Policy, Associate Professor at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and attending neonatologist at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
Date: 9/19/19 @ 11:00am in MRF Hamovitch (UPC). Talk flyer.
Steve Higgins, Director and Professor, University of Vermont Center for Behavior and Health.
Date: 1/10/19 @ 12pm in CSC 250. Talk announcement here.
Video recording of talk:
Part 1 – https://youtu.be/pxFvTtUB4Z8
Part 2 – https://youtu.be/GEtjYY5KhVU
Expertise: Behavioral economics, opioid use disorder treatment, health disparities, tobacco regulatory science.
Richard Miech, Principal Investigator of the US Monitoring the Future Study and Professor, University of Michigan Survey Research Center
Date: 2/15/19 @ 1:30pm in SSB 117. Talk announcement here.
Video recording of talk: https://youtu.be/zeO1LGLdA0c
Expertise: Youth and young adult substance use epidemiology, survey methods.
Eric Pedersen, Senior Behavioral Scientist, RAND Corporation
Date: 3/22/19 @ 1:30pm in SSB 117. Talk flyer.
Expertise: Young adult/adolescent alcohol use and comorbid mental health disorders.
Dustin Duncan, Director, NYU Spatial Epidemiology Research Lab
Date: 3/27/19 @ 9:00am in SST-2904 (Soto Building II). Talk flyer.
Expertise: LBGTQ populations, disparities, neighborhood effects on behavior, risky sex behavior
Katie Witkiweitz, Professor University of New Mexico, Area Chair for Quantitative Psychology
Date: 4/19/19 @ 1:00pm in MRF Hamovitch (UPC). Talk flyer.
Video recording of talk:
https://bit.ly/309Liee
Expertise: Alcohol use treatment, mindfulness/meditation, longitudinal data analysis
Edythe London, Director of UCLA Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology
Date: 5/17/19 @ 11:30am in SSB 301. Talk flyer.
Expertise: Neuroscience of addiction, decision making, self-control, neuropharmacology
