What are the factors that influence substance use and abuse?
Certain factors can affect the likelihood and speed of developing an addiction:
- Family history of addiction. Drug addiction is more common in some families and likely involves genetic predisposition.
- Mental health disorder.
- Peer pressure.
- Lack of family involvement.
- Early use.
- Taking a highly addictive drug.
Which is a personal risk factor for drug abuse?
Individual-level risk factors may include a person’s genetic predisposition to addiction or exposure to alcohol prenatally. Individual-level protective factors might include positive self-image, self-control, or social competence.
What is drug epidemiology?
Illicit drug use is defined as use of illegal drugs and nonmedical use of prescription-type psychotherapeutic drugs. An important aspect of the epidemiology of drug use is the variation among persons (based on gender, age, and other demographic factors), place (region, population density), and time.
What is the pharmacology of a drug?
Pharmacology is the study of how a drug affects a biological system and how the body responds to the drug. The discipline encompasses the sources, chemical properties, biological effects and therapeutic uses of drugs.
What causes a substance use disorder?
A person’s genes, the action of the drug, peer pressure, emotional distress, anxiety, depression, and environmental stress can all be factors. Many who develop a substance use problem have depression, attention deficit disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or another mental problem.
Is substance use disorder a disability?
Box. Figure 1-1: Substance Use Disorders as a Coexisting Disability. Chemical dependency is called a disability and covered as such under the provisions of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA).
What are three specific substance use disorders?
This section discusses the impact of the DSM-5 revisions to each substance-specific SUD in terms of prevalence and measurement considerations.
- Alcohol Use Disorder.
- Caffeine Use Disorder.
- Cannabis Use Disorder.
- Phencyclidine Use Disorder and Other Hallucinogen Use Disorder.
- Inhalant Use Disorder.
- Opioid Use Disorder.
Can someone be diagnosed with more than one substance use disorder?
When a person meets the criteria for a substance use disorder and is diagnosed with one or more additional mental health disorders, this is called having co-occurring psychiatric conditions or a dual diagnosis. Any one of the disorders can arise first and evoke the emergence of the others.
How does substance use affect the following brain body behavior?
Drugs interfere with the way neurons send, receive, and process signals via neurotransmitters. Some drugs, such as marijuana and heroin, can activate neurons because their chemical structure mimics that of a natural neurotransmitter in the body. This allows the drugs to attach onto and activate the neurons.
How does the brain play a role in addiction?
When someone develops an addiction, the brain craves the reward of the substance. This is due to the intense stimulation of the brain’s reward system. In response, many continue use of the substance, unlocking a host of euphoric feelings and strange behavioral traits.