IT’S COMPLICATED –
Oct. 7, 2025 – The brain physically adapts to rely on drinking as a way to ease stress and anxiety—creating a powerful cycle that makes quitting extremely difficult. Experts say the finding pinpoints a biological mechanism behind addiction, offering fresh evidence that alcoholism is not simply about pleasure or willpower, but deep-rooted changes in brain function. The study, published in Biological Psychiatry: Global Open Science, found the effect occurs in the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus, a region that helps regulate stress and emotional states.
Lead author Professor Friedbert Weiss said: ‘What makes addiction so hard to break is that people aren’t simply chasing a high—they’re trying to escape the powerful negative states of withdrawal.
‘Alcohol provides relief from that agony, which locks people into the cycle.’
Scientists say the discovery could pave the way for new treatments for alcohol dependence and anxiety disorders.
