Is drug and alcohol addiction a choice or disease
To many people, more so those with an understanding of how the human body operates, it is clear that the body is meant to function in a given manner. The approved way of body functioning is usually changed when one is addicted to alcohol or any other drug; hence it does not function normally. This is one of the reasons any addiction is generally referred to as a disorder or a disease. Therefore, it is not based on the individual’s choice to be an addict but the overall orientation of the body that is changed when one uses alcohol or a drug for a long time to the point of being an addict (Heather, 117).
The first reason why addiction is not a choice but rather a disease of the disorder is that addiction changes how the brain works, or responds to situations involving rewards, self-control or even stress. The second key reason is that the effects of addiction are long term in that they can persist even when a person stops drinking alcohol. This means that the results are not just tied to the drug that led to their addiction. This is also key based on the fact that it is not about the choices made by the individual to stop drinking so that they can control addiction. Even if they stopped drinking, the effects might indeed be on for a given number of months or even years. It is because of this reason that many people find it necessary after quitting drinking alcohol or any using any other drug to check in a rehabilitation centre as a way of ensuring that they do not fall back to the addiction even after quitting. At the same time, it is because of this reason that many find it hard to quit.
If an addiction when to be compared to any other typical disease as a way of illustrating its effects and why it qualifies to be treated as a disease or a mental disorder, one would say, a typical disease such as heart disease affects a given body organ just as it is the case with addiction more specifically alcohol addiction in this case (Heather, 121). The heart disease affects the heart only as alcohol addiction affects the brain. Both the disease such as heart disease and addiction such as alcohol addiction can lead to poor quality of life and increased risk of premature death as a result of its effects.
Most of the disease can be prevented by either leading proper and healthy lives as well as making sound decisions on what to engage in and what not to participate in. This is indeed key based on the fact that there is need to understand that the choices that one makes will either prevent them from being alcoholics or will ensure that they can work excellently well for them and ensure they live a healthy life (Sinclair-House) The final similarity is that they are both treatable to prevent further damage. For heart disease, one would be advised to take medication and live healthy lives. In contrast, for alcohol, one would be advised to lead healthy lives as well as be checked into a rehabilitation centre where they are treated and given medication to ensure the body is not addicted once again.
In conclusion, it is not by choice for anyone to be addicted. Still, it is a disorder or a disease that happens when the brain is affected by a given drug that an individual frequently takes in given proportions (Sinclair-House). There is need for addicted people to be helped have to a have a turn around when it comes to their lives as opposed to the case where they are not adequately addressed which may lead to lifetime consequences.
Work Cited:
Heather, Nick. “Q: Is addiction a brain disease or a moral failing? A: Neither.” Neuroethics 10.1 (2017): 115-124.
Sinclair-House, Nicholas, John J. Child, and Hans S. Crombag. “Addiction is a brain disease, and it doesn’t matter: Prior choice in drug use blocks leniency in criminal punishment.” Psychology, Public Policy, and Law (2019).