Addiction is a Brain Disease, and it Matters

Scientific advances over the past 20 years have shown that drug addiction is a chronic, relapsing disease that results from the prolonged effects of drugs on the brain. As with many other brain diseases, addiction has embedded behavioral and social-context aspects that are important parts of the dis...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1997-10, Vol.278 (5335), p.45-47
Main Author: Leshner, Alan I.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addiction
Addictive behaviors
Behavior
Behavior, Addictive
Behavioral neuroscience
Brain - drug effects
Brain - physiology
Brain diseases
Brain Diseases - chemically induced
Brain Diseases - physiopathology
Brain research
Care and treatment
Chronic Disease
Chronic diseases
Chronic illnesses
Cocaine
Criminal justice
Diseases
Drug abuse
Drug addiction
Drug use
Drug withdrawal
Frontiers in Neuroscience: The Science of Substance Abuse
Health Policy
Heroin
Humans
Immune system
Narcotics
Physiological aspects
Public Health
Recurrence
Social issues
Social Problems
Substance abuse treatment
Substance-Related Disorders - etiology
Substance-Related Disorders - psychology
Substance-Related Disorders - therapy
Withdrawal symptoms
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Summary:Scientific advances over the past 20 years have shown that drug addiction is a chronic, relapsing disease that results from the prolonged effects of drugs on the brain. As with many other brain diseases, addiction has embedded behavioral and social-context aspects that are important parts of the disorder itself. Therefore, the most effective treatment approaches will include biological, behavioral, and social-context components. Recognizing addiction as a chronic, relapsing brain disorder characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use can impact society's overall health and social policy strategies and help diminish the health and social costs associated with drug abuse and addiction.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.278.5335.45