This research was covered in the following media　
(*=online edition)
◆2/5　Yomiuri newspaper, Mainichi newspaper, Sankei newspaper, Nikkei Keizai Shinbun newspaper, Kyodo News*, Jiji Press*, Infoseek Rakuten News*, 　 Yahoo! News*
◆2/10  QLifePro*
and an additional number of local media.

Outline

The research group of Associate Professor Yasuhiro Fujiwara of the OCU Graduate School of Medicine Department of Gastroenterology, in collaborative research with the Graduate School of Medicine Department of Medical Education and General Practice and Uehonmachi Watanabe Medical Clinic, showed that smoking cessation has a positive effect on gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD). It is the first time this effect has been shown.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease causes heartburn and negatively influences quality of life (QOL). It is a common gastrointestinal disease that has been increasing in Japan since the 1990s. Approximately 10-20% of adults in Japan are estimated to suffer from GERD.

Smoking had already been identified as one of the risk factors for GERD, but until now hardly any research had been carried out into the influence of smoking cessation on GERD or QOL. This research results that smoking cessation improved GERD symptoms suggestthat patients can overcome their diseases by improving their symptoms whenthey choose to positively change their lifestyle. 

The research results have been published on 4 February 2016 in the on-line American scientific journal PLOS ONE.

【Publication name:】
　PLOS ONE
【Title of article:】
　Long-term Benefits of Smoking Cessation on Gastroesophageal Reflux
　Disease and Health-Related Quality of Life
【Authors】
　Yukie Kohata, Yasuhiro Fujiwara, Takanori Watanabe, Masanori Kobayashi,
　Yasuhiko Takemoto, Noriko Kamata, Hirokazu Yamagami, Tetsuya Tanigawa,
　Masatsugu Shiba, Toshio Watanabe, Kazunari Tominaga, Taichi Shuto,
　Tetsuo Arakawa
【URL】
　http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0147860