Alexis Ortega, Trainee

Alexis Ortega

TRAINEE

University of Arizona Student alexisortega@email.arizona.edu

ALEXIS ORTEGA is an upcoming senior at the University of Arizona studying Public Health with an emphasis in Quantitative Methods and Spanish. She is very interested in research and epidemiology, but has long term goals of applying to medical school and developing a platform in health policy. Her passion for Public Health is centered around health disparities and inequities that minority groups face. At school, Alexis is Vice President of the Bobcats Senior Honorary and a member Multicultural Junior Advisory Board as a Hispanic Alumni Scholar Representative. Alexis is originally from Surprise, Arizona. She spends her free time watching her two dogs and working as a barista part time at Dutch Bros Coffee.

Project

THE ROLE OF EXOGENOUS HORMONE DELIVERY ON SMOKING BEHAVIORS

The research project is a literature review seeking to answer the question, “What roles does exogenous hormone delivery have on changes in cigarette smoking related outcomes?”. From what little research that has been done, there is a significant difference found in smoking behaviors when hormones are involved. Because of this, women typically have a much more difficult time with smoking cessation and abstinence than men. Increasing research efforts in this area would greatly help in the treatment of women who smoke, as well as provide a better understanding to physicians on how smoking behaviors can be influenced. This literature review was created to support the claim that smokers, primarily women, can benefit from the delivery of exogenous hormones by analyzing previous research on the subject. In turn, this opens the door for more research to be conducted on the effect of hormones in smoking and even how oral contraceptives can assist in smoking cessation.