Like many of the aspects of our lives, members of our society develop beliefs based around what our community and what our government holds a true. This is no different with drug abuse. On this page, we hope to identify some commonly held beliefs about drug abuse and then reveal what the truth is behind those beliefs.
- “Once a person uses an illicit drug once, they will be addicted to that drug.”
Research in humans and rats have shown that addiction develops when the victim has little to no options in their environment to replace the stimulation the drug gives. Carl Hart, Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Psychology at Columbia University, goes further with this same topic in the video below. - “Addicts are people who deserve to be punished.”
As opposed to criminals who commit crimes such as theft or murder, people who become addicted to hard drugs victimize themselves with a sickness and in turn affect loved one’s around them. Instead of punishment, treatment should be utilized to help heal those with the self affliction and pain that drugs cause. - “Being a drug addict is a choice.”
Though willpower is a powerful tool to affect change in one’s life, many people are born with a natural inclination for addiction to drugs. Studies on brain imaging show that there are differences in brains of people who eventually become addicted and those who do not. The brains of addiction-inclined people are subject to structural and function changes in their brain when drugs are introduced. Thus making impulse control more difficult and there being less pleasure from natural rewards.