Addiction Now Officially Defined as a Disease

I'm not surprised to hear this.

The American Society of Addiction Medicine has released a new definition of addiciton, classifying it as a brain disorder and a primary disease rather than an issue of behavioral problems.

Alcoholics have long described their affliction as a disease. Some even referred to it as an allergy. One thing is for sure, if you descend into a room where addicts meet, most people there know that they are dealing with something big.

"At its core, addiction isn't just a social problem or a moral problem or a criminal problem. It's a brain problem whose behaviors manifest in all these other areas," said Dr. Michael Miller, past president of ASAM who oversaw the development of the new definition. "Many behaviors driven by addiction are real problems and sometimes criminal acts. But the disease is about brains, not drugs. It's about underlying neurology, not outward actions."

I wanted to know more, so I looked beyond the NBC News article I found on Facebook and dug into ASAM's website to find this.

Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. Dysfunction in these circuits leads to characteristic biological, psychological, social and spiritual manifestations. This is reflected in an individual pathologically pursuing reward and/or relief by substance use and other behaviors.

Addiction is characterized by inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioral control, craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviors and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response. Like other chronic diseases, addiction often involves cycles of relapse and remission. Without treatment or engagement in recovery activities, addiction is progressive and can result in disability or premature death.

Previously, addiction had been treated as a psychiatric problem. Now, if it is considered a primary disease, it may be treated differently.