Addiction is one of the most intensely studied conditions in modern medicine, yet even with high‑resolution brain scans and genetic tools, scientists still cannot fully explain why some people get ...

The conversation about addiction within Black families requires a fundamental shift toward understanding it as a medical condition rather than a moral failing. This perspective change proves crucial ...

For years, addiction was seen as a matter of personal failure—a bad habit or a lack of discipline. People believed those who struggled with substance abuse could stop if they simply wanted to. But ...

Some researchers argue that the roles of social environment and personal choice have to be considered in order to make progress in treating people addicted to drugs. By Jan Hoffman The message ...

Does using alcohol, nicotine, or cannabis engender addiction by changing the structure of brains, or does the structure of brains incline some people toward using those substances? In standard brain ...

For many decades, it's been widely accepted that alcoholism (or addiction) is a disease. The "disease concept" is taught in addiction training programs and to patients in treatment programs. It is ...

Consider two adult siblings who grew up in the same household and same family atmosphere. One sibling can drink socially—he enjoys a beer now and then, but overall, he can take it or leave it—while ...

One of the dominant ways of thinking about addiction is as a disease. While there is evidence for this approach, it often leads to a dismissal of addiction’s social causes, rooted in alienation and ...