Nature Versus Nature in Addiction

Nature versus Nature

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Nature versus Nature in Addiction

Introduction

Addiction is a resulting condition that occurs once a person engages in certain activities or ingests substances such as drugs or alcohol which are pleasurable. Continued use of these substances becomes compulsive and tends to interfere with one’s ordinary life errands. Addiction is a complex mind disease and quitting takes more of an individual’s strong will or good intention. Addiction is caused by many factors such as nature and nurture amid many others. Discussed below are ways that both nature and nurture influence addiction to drugs or alcohol.

Nurture and Drug Addiction

The topic of nurture versus nature is highly debated. Researchers believe that nurture and drug addiction is due to simple human genetics. A person’s family record of addiction is a major risk factor in developing an addiction to drugs or alcohol. An individual’s genes provide the necessary information that directs the way that human bodies react under certain cellular levels. Research indicates that about 99% of human genes are comparable and the 1% that is different accounts for differences such as hair color and height and invisible differences such as risks of hereditary diseases, and addiction to drug or alcohol. These genes play a significant part in determining whether an individual will become addicted to a drug or alcohol. Family history and genetic factors influence the probability that risk of drug or alcohol addiction dependence will be passed down from parents to their children. People with such genes in most cases show no resistance or withdrawal symptoms when exposed to drugs or alcohol use (Verster, 2011). It is recommended for people with such genes to avoid an environment where there is drug or alcohol use to limit the chances of drug abuse.

According to ‘Archives of General Psychiatry’, Kenneth Kendler and his colleagues from Virginia Commonwealth University reported that adopted children whose natal parents abused drugs were twice likely to abuse drugs. The same was reported for their adopted siblings with whom there was no shared heredity (Kendler et’ al, 2012).

 Nature and Drug Addiction

Research in drug addiction with respect to nature indicates that there are certain circumstances within the environment that play a major role in determining a person’s probability of alcohol or drug addiction. An example of an environmental factor is a person’s socialization process. In this case, it is when a person is in the company of people who often engage in alcohol or drug use. The regular expo sure to alcohol or drugs makes them appear less harmful and, with time, a person might become desensitized to these substances use and the dangers associated, making a person most likely to start using and become addicted. People who are at risk of addiction to drug or alcohol use have to find alternative ways to have power over their environment to limit the chances of getting addicted (Ruiz, 2011).