Why Is Drug Addiction Viewed As a Disease?

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) illicit drug abuse and addiction costs society 181 billion dollars yearly. Drug addicts choose many different drugs, such as heroin, metamphetamines, marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine. Regardless of the drug of choice, drug addiction takes an exceedingly negative toll on the user, disrupting his health, home, work, school, and/or social life. Often, people wonder why a drug addict cannot simply stop taking drugs. However, the issue is more complicated.

Definition

• Drug addiction is a chronic brain disease that often spawns relapses and results in impulsive drug-seeking behavior. The addict is unmindful of the severe consequences to himself and to those around him.

The Cause

• Drug addiction is categorized as a disease because once an individual engages in drug abuse and becomes addicted, his brain's structure and function changes.

Brain Effect

• When an individual abuses illegal drugs, the chemicals enter the brain's communication system, interfering with how the nerve cells send, receive and absorb data.

Chemical Messengers

• Drugs such as heroin and marijuana are structured similarly to neurotransmitters (chemical messengers), which the brain spawns naturally. These drugs trick the brain's receptors and distort how the neurons (nerve cells) communicate with each other.

Overcoming Addiction

• Because of the changes drugs make to the brain, overcoming drug addiction is more than a matter of willpower. The addict must often seek treatment to free his body and mind from the drug it has become dependent on.