Not only is there scientific evidence that some drug users have a disease, many scientists now affirm that addiction is a chronic brain disease that can be treated successfully; in fact as successfully as many other chronic diseases like asthma, hypertension, and diabetes. This bold statement is fully substantiated by neuroscience (science of the brain and how it works), genetic, and clinical studies. “Addiction is a brain disease” is now the mantra of the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Adapted from an upcoming publication of the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. (NCADD), New York, NY.
More detail on this subject can be found in “Science of Addiction: From Neurobiology to Treatment” by C.K. Erickson (W.W. Norton, New York, NY, 2007), a book written for counselors and the general public.