The World of Addiction Essay - 1755 Words

â€Å"Addiction is a brain disease expressed in the form of compulsive behavior,† says by Alan Leshner in his article, â€Å"Addiction Is a Brain Disease† featured in the book Drug Abuse: Opposing Viewpoints. Addiction has a variety of meanings depending on what your viewpoint of addiction. According to dictionary.com, the concrete definition of the word addiction is, â€Å"the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.† Basically various doctors and therapist consider addiction to be a genetic disorder. â€Å"Provocative, controversial, unquestionably incomplete, the dopamine hypothesis provides a basic framework†¦show more content†¦They include alcoholism, substance/drug (including prescription drugs) addiction, nicotine addiction, and sex addiction, food addiction, shopping addiction, gambling addiction, work addiction and even internet addiction. They are manifold varieties of addiction; these are just a few of the well-known types of addiction. One of the more common addictions that were mentioned is substance or drug addiction. In the medical dictionary substance abuse means, â€Å"Excessive use of a potentially addictive substance, especially one that may modify body functions, such as drugs.† The effects of substance abuse can show a discrepancy between physical and psychological effects. Essentially every drug has dissimilar physical effects on the body; they all have an effect on the brain initially in a similar manner. The physical effects of substance abuse includes; respiratory issues, cardiac issues, and even gastrointestinal issues. With these issues, they can get severe enough to lead up to further severe issues such as lung cancer, heart attacks, and kidney or liver damage, which can ultimately lead to death. The psychological effects of this addiction can be just as harmful. The psychological effects included; hypothermia, paranoia, anxiety, violent behavior, hallucinations, depression, loss of interest , loss sense of reality, confusion, flashbacks, sense of distance, and catatonic syndrome (which affects the body’s centralShow MoreRelatedThe Powder World Of Cocaine Addiction1239 Words   |  5 Pageshave in regards to the powder world of cocaine addiction. Solving the crack it has put on society and the world (pun intended). If you don’t know what cocaine is , it is a highly addictive stimulant that is pleasurable but dangerous short term effects on the body, that eventually will cause a long term ramification. The problems referring towards cocaine abuse has an international effect, therefore cocaine is a problem that society can’t ignore. Today in our world cocaine or crack so to speak,Read MoreThe Effects Of Addiction On The World Today Essay2227 Words   |  9 Pagescontrolling monsters running rampant in the world today. 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