subject: Why Are Drugs Hugely Addictive? [print this page] The word "addiction" means an abnormally strong craving or forming of a psychological or physical habit. In medical terminology, the term "addiction" is used to express a compulsion or inordinate psychological dependence. It is basically a persistent biological disorder of the nervous system which, to some extent, is prone to the emotional, ecological and/or genital influence. The peculiarities of an addict include irrational, compulsive behaviour; preoccupied mental state and uncontrollable or habitual use of any harmful stuff knowingly.
When people are addicted to drugs, they seem to get a rush from the drugs. It stimulates their system and has an impact on their emotions as well as feelings of pain. They tend to become detached from their jobs and family and lose ambition. With the passage of time, their system becomes immune to the drugs and the rush is not there anymore. For this the addicts tend to increase their dosage.
Drugs tend to create a sort of dependency and the addicts become obsessed with them. Hence, there comes a time when the addict becomes capable of doing anything even for a little dosage, whether it's stealing or fighting or illegal means. They just want to escape the pain from not using the drug. Being ill tempered and fatigued are also part of the reaction to not getting drugs.
The addictive strength of drugs varies from substance to substance, and from person to person. Frequency and time of doses are critical factors for developing a drug addiction. The larger the dose is, the greater the risk is that the usage may become an addiction.
Almost all drugs target the reward system of the brain by flooding the circuit with dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, present in regions of the brain that control emotion, movement, motivation and feelings of pleasure. The overstimulation of this system, which usually responds to natural behaviours that are linked to survival, produces euphoric effects in response to the drugs. This reaction sets in motion a pattern that "teaches" people to replicate the behaviour of abusing drugs.
Consistent use of drugs causes the brain to get accustomed to the huge rushes of dopamine; hence it produces a reduced level of dopamine which reduces the effect of drug on mind. The decrease in pleasure forces the user to take larger doses for effect, which in turn makes him an addict.
The possibility and likeliness that someone would become addicted to drugs depends largely upon the social factors as well as lifestyle. Someone who has genetic history of drug abuse and has easier access to drugs is more likely to become addicted than a person who has a relaxed and happy lifestyle.
Genetic and environmental factors act together with critical developmental stages in life of a person to affect addiction vulnerability, and adolescents experience a dual challenge.
