Why addiction

In April , the American Society of Addiction Medicine ASAM released its new Definition of Addiction , which, for the first time, extends addiction to include behaviors other than problematic substance abuse.

A group of 80 addiction experts worked for four years to arrive at the new definition of addiction and concluded that addiction is about the underlying neurology of the brain—not about outward behavior. Addiction affects your brain's reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry to the extent that your motivations are altered so that your addictive behaviors replace healthy, self-care behaviors.

The brain's reward system is also altered in such a way that the memory of previous rewards—be it food, sex, or drugs—can trigger a biological and behavioral response to engage in the addictive behavior again, in spite of negative consequences, and sometimes even though you no longer even find pleasure in the activity.

Addiction also affects the frontal cortex of your brain in such a way as to alter your impulse control and judgment. This results in the "pathological pursuit of rewards," ASAM says when addicts return to their addictive behavior in order to "feel normal. Because this area of the brain continues to develop into young adulthood, the ASAM experts believe this is why early-onset exposure to substances is linked to the later development of addiction.

According to the ASAM definition, addiction is characterized by:. These conditions are also commonly present in addiction:. ASAM says that behavioral manifestations and complications of addiction, due to impaired control, can include:. Cognitive changes in addiction can include:. ASAM believes emotional changes in addiction can include:.

In the past, diagnosis of addiction has focused on outward manifestations of a person's behaviors, which can be observed and confirmed by standardized questionnaires. The new definition of addiction instead focuses on what's going on inside you, in your brain. The experts at ASAM hope their new definition leads to a better understanding of the disease process, which they say is biological, psychological, social, and spiritual in its manifestation.

Addiction can manifest itself in many behaviors beyond substance abuse. But not all members of an affected family are necessarily prone to addiction. Other factors can also raise your chances of addiction. Teens are especially vulnerable to possible addiction because their brains are not yet fully developed—particularly the frontal regions that help with impulse control and assessing risk.

Pleasure circuits in adolescent brains also operate in overdrive, making drug and alcohol use even more rewarding and enticing. NIH is launching a new nationwide study to learn more about how teen brains are altered by alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, and other drugs. Researchers will use brain scans and other tools to assess more than 10, youth over a year span.

The study will track the links between substance use and brain changes, academic achievement, IQ, thinking skills, and mental health over time. To treat addiction, scientists have identified several medications and behavioral therapies—especially when used in combination—that can help people stop using specific substances and prevent relapse.

Unfortunately, no medications are yet available to treat addiction to stimulants such as cocaine or methamphetamine, but behavioral therapies can help. More severe cases might require months or even years of treatment and follow-up, with real efforts by the individual and usually complete abstinence from the substance afterward. Addictive drugs, for example, can release two to 10 times the amount of dopamine that natural rewards do, and they do it more quickly and more reliably.

In a person who becomes addicted, brain receptors become overwhelmed. The brain responds by producing less dopamine or eliminating dopamine receptors—an adaptation similar to turning the volume down on a loudspeaker when noise becomes too loud.

People who develop an addiction typically find that, in time, the desired substance no longer gives them as much pleasure. At this point, compulsion takes over. The pleasure associated with an addictive drug or behavior subsides—and yet the memory of the desired effect and the need to recreate it the wanting persists.

The learning process mentioned earlier also comes into play. The hippocampus and the amygdala store information about environmental cues associated with the desired substance, so that it can be located again. These memories help create a conditioned response—intense craving—whenever the person encounters those environmental cues.

Cravings contribute not only to addiction but to relapse after a hard-won sobriety. A person addicted to heroin may be in danger of relapse when he sees a hypodermic needle, for example, while another person might start to drink again after seeing a bottle of whiskey. Conditioned learning helps explain why people who develop an addiction risk relapse even after years of abstinence. Cultivate diverse interests that provide meaning to your life. Understand that your problems usually are transient, and perhaps most importantly, acknowledge that life is not always supposed to be pleasurable.

This holiday season alone, millions of people will turn to HelpGuide for free mental health guidance and support. So many people rely on us in their most difficult moments. Can we rely on you? Some studies suggest a person's risk of becoming addicted is partly genetic, but environmental factors, such as being around other people with addictions, are also thought to increase the risk. Behaviours such as substance misuse can be a way of blocking out difficult issues.

Unemployment and poverty can trigger addiction, along with stress and emotional or professional pressure. Addiction is a treatable condition. Whatever the addiction, there are lots of ways you can seek help. You could see your GP for advice or contact an organisation that specialises in helping people with addictions. You can use the following online directories to find addiction treatment services in your area:.

The following links have more information about the treatment, support and advice available for dealing with:. To speak to someone anonymously about any type of addiction, you can call the Samaritans free on Page last reviewed: 9 June Next review due: 9 June Addiction: what is it?