Addiction Is a Disease Not a Choice

Addiction; a Neurological Disease
Addiction is a disease rather than a choice, because it is a neurological disorder that can only be remedied through medical intervention


There is a lot of controversy on whether addiction is a disease or a choice. However, there is a lot of evidence supporting the idea that addiction is a disease rather than a choice. According to the, “National Institute of Justice” journal, drug addiction is a chronic illness that is linked to changes in brain structure. Drugs activate a pathway in the brain known as the mesolimbic reward system. When drugs are used it prompts a dependency on that drug, whatever that drug might be. Due to these facts stated above, addiction is a disease rather than a choice, because it is a neurological disorder that can only be remedied through medical intervention (Fisanic Pg 49).
Many people view drug addicts as weak or bad people that are unable to live moral lives and are unable to control their erratic behavior. Addiction is actually a chronic, relapsing illness characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use (Fisanic Pg 51). With people on the street selling any drug one could think of left and right, it’s not exactly helping these drug seekers but to progressively get worse. This just proves how drug addicts are victims to their own societal situation.
Addiction is classified as a disease. In illness, the model used to explain this is the disease model. The disease model says that a person has an organ that gets a physical or cellular defect, and as a result there are symptoms (Netherton). The same symptoms with that defect on that particular organ are seen.   Drugs work in the midbrain. It takes place in what is called the cerebral cortex. In addiction, a defect occurs at a level of brain processing far earlier than the cortical processing (Netherton pg 23).
Addiction also has tremendous implications for the health of the public, drug use, directly or indirectly, is now a major vector for...