Controversial Issues in Drug Addiction Research

Science continues to research the causes of drug addiction in the hopes of creating a cure. Drug addiction research includes learning how drugs work within the brain and change and affect a person's behavior and attitude. Once a better understanding is gained about drug addiction, treatment options are devised, including medication.

Ethics

• Provisions to ensure the safety of the participants in any research are extremely important. Informed consent means ensuring all information about side effects, monitoring, length of research and other considerations are understood by participants.

Medical Treatments

• The use of medication to block the absorption of a drug is used frequently. In some cases, the medication can be more addictive and dangerous than the drug itself.

Human Subjects

• The government has specific guidelines that protect children, prisoners and others from being used in research. This includes drug trials conducted in Third World countries.

Use of Animals

• Animal testing involves the use of rats, which have implants in their brains tied to the receptors associated with the drug being studies.

The Facts

• The primary purpose of drug addiction research is to find cures, treatment and prevention and intervention options. The cure should not be worse than the disease, but arguments for and against research can be made.