DIVERSITY MATTERS –
Aug. 15, 2023 – With addiction, we normally think of hard drugs, but people can be addicted to alcohol, cigarettes, and even sugary food. Addictive drugs pump up levels of dopamine and serotonin in the brain, causing a pleasurable “high”. The brain sees that as a reward for consuming the drug and connives to get more.
Addiction results in a high rate of preventable deaths. Opioids alone account for some 100,000 victims in the US each year. The social costs run into hundreds of billions of dollars.
People with addiction typically develop tolerance to their drug of choice, leading to snowballing doses and increased odds of bodily harm. Withdrawal is another unsavory characteristic of addiction. Whatever pleasure one derives from the drug, withdrawal subtracts it, leaving the person miserable and prone to relapse.
