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The modern disease theory of alcoholism states that problem drinking is sometimes caused by a disease of the brain, characterized by altered brain structure and function. Today, alcohol use disorder (AUD) is used as a more scientific and suitable approach to alcohol dependence and alcohol -related problems.
The disease model of addiction describes an addiction as a disease with genetic, biological, neurological or environmental origin. [1] The traditional medical model of disease requires only an abnormal condition causing distress, discomfort or dysfunction to an affected individual.
According to the new disease model, rather than being a disease in the conventional sense, addiction is a disease of choice. That is, it is a disorder of the parts of the brain necessary to make proper decisions. As one becomes addicted to cocaine, the ventral tegmentum nucleus accumbens in the brain is the organ. [5]
The disease model of addiction has long contended the maladaptive patterns of alcohol and substance use displays addicted individuals are the result of a lifelong disease that is biological in origin and exacerbated by environmental contingencies. This conceptualization renders the individual essentially powerless over his or her problematic ...
Peele maintains that, depending on the person, abstinence or moderation are valid approaches to treat excessive drinking. In a Psychology Today article which compared the Life Process Program with the disease model, [12] he also argues against the theory proposed decades ago by modern physicians, mental health professionals, research scientists, etc. that addiction is a disease. [13]
Neither Suboxone nor methadone is a miracle cure. They buy addicts time to fix their lives, seek out counseling and allow their brains to heal. Doctors recommend tapering off the medication only with the greatest of caution. The process can take years given that addiction is a chronic disease and effective therapy can be a long, grueling affair.
The etymology of the term addiction throughout history has been misunderstood and has taken on various meanings associated with the word. [201] An example is the usage of the word in the religious landscape of early modern Europe. [202] "Addiction" at the time meant "to attach" to something, giving it both positive and negative connotations.
The general theory of a vaccine intended to "immunize" against drug addiction or other substance abuse is that it would condition the immune system to attack and consume or otherwise disable the molecules of such substances that cause a reaction in the brain, thus preventing the addict from being able to realize the effect of the drug.