People with substance use disorder—whether addicted to alcohol, cocaine, heroin, or nicotine—share a strikingly similar ...

Remarkable scientific progress over the past five decades has helped us develop knowledge of how drugs of abuse induce pleasure, reinforce use, and lead to the compulsive self-administration we call ...

Addiction medicine offers a useful framework. Many people use substances without developing addiction. The difference often ...

Does using alcohol, nicotine, or cannabis engender addiction by changing the structure of brains, or does the structure of brains incline some people toward using those substances? In standard brain ...

Addiction often isn’t about chasing pleasure—it’s about escaping pain. Researchers at Scripps Research have discovered that a tiny brain region called the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) ...

Addiction is one of the most common and consequential chronic medical conditions in the United States. Nationwide, more than 46 million people met the criteria for a substance abuse disorder as of ...

Consider someone addicted to alcohol, drugs, or a behaviour like gambling. Why do they continue, even when they say they want to stop? It’s a question that highlights a fundamental disconnect: the gap ...

Your endless scroll may be costing you more than just your time. New research shows it’s changing the way you think and make decisions. These days, almost everything is available in the form of quick, ...