Lauren McCarl Dutra

Lauren McCarl Dutra is a social epidemiologist. Dr. Dutra has spent 20 years conducting research on chronic disease prevention. She has also spent more than 15 years conducting research focused on public health policy, cancer prevention, tobacco prevention, cannabis, and health disparities.

Dr. Dutra directs projects on youth tobacco prevention for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the California Department of Public Health. She also evaluates media campaigns focused on health promotion and chronic disease prevention. Dr. Dutra is interested in studying the psychosocial, economic, and environmental contributors to tobacco use, cannabis use, and chronic disease in general. She is committed to preventing tobacco use among youth. Her current research interests also include public health outcomes for vulnerable, marginalized, and hard-to-reach populations, including American Indian and Alaska Native youth.

Prior to joining RTI International, Dr. Dutra’s research as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, San Francisco focused on youth e-cigarette use and longitudinal trajectories of cigarette smoking, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable populations. Dr. Dutra’s doctoral research focused on the impact of discrimination and human rights violations on tobacco use in South Africa and the impact of worksite safety on tobacco use and safety behaviors among American blue-collar workers. While obtaining her doctorate, Dr. Dutra served as National Cancer Institute Cancer Prevention Fellow. Before obtaining her doctorate, Dr. Dutra worked as a psychotherapist administering a treatment for chronic disease management and mental health. She conducted this research with patients with HIV, opioid addiction, diabetes, and depression and anxiety.

Dr. Dutra has published more than 40 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals, including Tobacco Control, Social Science & Medicine, Journal of Adolescent Health, Preventive Medicine, and JAMA Pediatrics. Dr. Dutra has also presented her research at multiple national and international conferences and participated in media interviews about her research.