How big of a role does environment play in addiction?

What role does environment and distress play in addiction? Below is an interesting scientific study whose controversial findings were published in a respectable journal named Psychopharmacology back in 1978 which lead to the university terminating the project. It would be interesting to see what role stressful environments impact other forms of addiction. Also how communities could be improved to lower suffering and self destructive behavior. If scientific freedom actually existed and projects were funded for the good of humanity in lieu of profits and mechanisms of control we would all live in a much happier world. Something defiantly worth exploring.. 

It's not the morphine, it's the size of the cage: Rat Park experiment upturns conventional wisdom about addiction

We all learned this in DARE class. About the rats in a cage who can self-administer morphine who get addicted to the stuff, and then just hit that lever until they die. A seemingly keystone argument in the war against drugs. Professor Avram Goldstein, the creator of that study, has said: "A rat addicted to heroin is not rebelling against society, is not a victim of socioeconomic circumstances, is not a product of a dysfunctional family, and is not a criminal. The rat's behavior is simply controlled by the action of heroin (actually morphine, to which heroin is converted in the body) on its brain." So, it's the drug, and its addictive control. Surely we must eradicate drugs as a result! 

But there's another model out there by researcher Bruce Alexander of Simon Fraser University called Rat Park. From that wikipedia page: 

Alexander's hypothesis was that drugs do not cause addiction, and that the apparent addiction to opiate drugs commonly observed in laboratory rats exposed to it is attributable to their living conditions, and not to any addictive property of the drug itself. He told the Canadian Senate in 2001 that prior experiments in which laboratory rats were kept isolated in cramped metal cages, tethered to a self-injection apparatus, show only that "severely distressed animals, like severely distressed people, will relieve their distress pharmacologically if they can."

To test his hypothesis, Alexander built Rat Park, an 8.8 m2 (95 sq ft) housing colony, 200 times the square footage of a standard laboratory cage. There were 16–20 rats of both sexes in residence, an abundance of food, balls and wheels for play, and enough space for mating and raising litters. The results of the experiment appeared to support his hypothesis. Rats who had been forced to consume morphine hydrochloride for 57 consecutive days were brought to Rat Park and given a choice between plain tap water and water laced with morphine. For the most part, they chose the plain water. "Nothing that we tried," Alexander wrote, "... produced anything that looked like addiction in rats that were housed in a reasonably normal environment." Control groups of rats isolated in small cages consumed much more morphine in this and several subsequent experiments.

And so rats that are born into extreme conditions in small cages are clearly more likely to self-medicate. Tom Stafford of the BBC writes: 

The results are catastrophic for the simplistic idea that one use of a drug inevitably hooks the user by rewiring their brain. When Alexander's rats were given something better to do than sit in a bare cage they turned their noses up at morphine because they preferred playing with their friends and exploring their surroundings to getting high.

Further support for his emphasis on living conditions came from another set of tests his team carried out in which rats brought up in ordinary cages were forced to consume morphine for 57 days in a row. If anything should create the conditions for chemical rewiring of their brains, this should be it. But once these rats were moved to Rat Park they chose water over morphine when given the choice, although they did exhibit some minor withdrawal symptoms.

You can read more about Rat Park in the original scientific report. A good summary is in this comic by Stuart McMillen.

So, if Rat Park is to be believed, drug addiction is a situation that arises from poor socioeconomic conditions. From literally being a rat in a cage. If you're a rat in a park, you'd rather hang out with your friends and explore the world around you. 

Perhaps it's time the war on drugs becomes a war on the existence of poverty? (edit: Poverty of our relationships to family, community, and nation too, not merely monetary. As commenters have pointed out, there are plenty of people who have plenty of money who may well be the most poverty-ridden in other respects.)

It's not about the drugs. It's about the social environment in which we live.

Source: Garry Tan

Your Brain on Drugs

Your Brain on Drugs: Dopamine and Addiction
From: BigThink.com
By: David Hirschman
September 13, 2010
"You can turn your back on a person, but never turn your back on a drug, especially when it's waving a razor sharp hunting knife in your eye" wrote gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, no stranger himself to the compelling nature of addiction.

As has been demonstrated many, many, many times over, drug addiction is a powerful force that can take control of the lives of users. In the past, addiction was thought to be a weakness of character, but in recent decades research has increasingly found that addiction to drugs like cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine is a matter of brain chemistry.

Dr. Nora Volkow, the director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, says that the way a brain becomes addicted to a drug is related to how a drug increases levels of the naturally-occurring neurotransmitter dopamine, which modulates the brain's ability to perceive reward reinforcement. The pleasure sensation that the brain gets when dopamine levels are elevated creates the motivation for us to proactively perform actions that are indispensable to our survival (like eating or procreation). Dopamine is what conditions us to do the things we need to do.

Using addictive drugs floods the limbic brain with dopamine—taking it up to as much as five or 10 times the normal level. With these levels elevated, the user's brain begins to associate the drug with an outsize neurochemical reward. Over time, by artificially raising the amount of dopamine our brains think is "normal," the drugs create a need that only they can meet.

"If a drug produces increases in dopamine in these limbic areas of the brain, then your brain is going to understand that signal as something that is very reinforcing, and will learn it very rapidly," says Volkow. "And so that the next time you get exposed to that stimuli, your brain already has learned that that's reinforcing, and you immediately—what we call a type of memory that's conditioning—will desire that particular drug." Over time, the consistently high levels of dopamine create plastic changes to the brain, desensitizing neurons so that they are less affected by it, and decreasing the number of receptors. That leads to the process of addiction, wherein a person loses control and is left with an intense drive to compulsively take the drug.

According to Volkow, the reason that dopamine-producing drugs are so addictive is that they have the ability to constantly fill a need for more dopamine. "So a person may take a hit of cocaine, snort it, it increases dopamine, takes a second, it increases dopamine, third, fourth, fifth, sixth. So there's never that decrease that ultimately leads to the satiety," she says.

Adam Kepecs, a neuroscientist at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory says that addiction has to do with the brain's expectations. An emerging idea, he says, is that drugs basically "hijack" the brain's normal computational enjoyment and reward mechanisms.

"Let’s say you’re happy about a great chocolate ice cream," says Kepecs, as an example."Over time you learn to expect that the chocolate ice cream is really great and you have no more dopamine released in expectation of that when you receive it. Whereas, if you take an addictive drug, you can never learn to expect it because the drug itself will release an extra kick of dopamine. And when that happens, the value of that drug keeps increasing because now you’re learning that 'Wow my expectations were violated, therefore this must be much more valuable than what I thought before.' So basically what ends up happening: the dopamine system gets hijacked by these drugs."

Volkow notes that there are other components to addiction—like genetics and age of exposure—which is why not everyone who takes drugs becomes an addict. She says approximately 50% of the vulnerability of a person to become addicted is genetically determined, and research indicates that if a person is exposed to drugs in early adolescence they are much more likely to become addicted than if they were exposed to the same drugs as an adult.

Takeaway
One of the key functions of the neurotransmitter dopamine is to create feelings of pleasure that our brains associate with necessary physiological actions like eating and procreating. We are driven to perform these vital functions because our brains are conditioned to expect the dopamine rush that accompanies them.

Addictive drugs flood the brain with dopamine and condition us to expect artificially high levels of the neurotransmitter. Over time, the user's brain requires more dopamine than it can naturally produce, and it becomes dependent on the drug, which never actually satisfies the need it has created.

More Resources

• What Addicts Need, 2008 Newsweek article on how scientists are using insights about neurochemistry to treat addiction.
• Addictive Research, 2007 TheScientist.com article
• University of Texas Addiction Science Research and Education Center description of the role dopamine plays in addiction.

Is Meow Meow the new ecstasy?

I wanted to share some thoughts on a recent news article I ran across thanks to DoseNation. Its on Mephedrone (2-methylamino-1-p-tolylpropane-1-one) A.K.A. 4-MMC, 4-methylephedrone or Meow Meow from an online article on the UK Times Newspaper website. Its a good example of how many inaccuracies are commonly found in media coverage on the subject of “drugs”. Blatant fear mongering. Why? Simple, fear captures attention and for news corporations attention is revenue. Notice how the author repeatedly mentions risks to young people and that this obscure chemical is most likely in your neighborhood causing 14 year old girls to die and for boys to rip their scrotum's off. Emotional terrorism, playing on parents fears just to sell copy and perpetuate drug stereotypes by attempting to scare readers into believing their children are in imminent danger by some mysterious new drug. This type of reporting only exacerbates the typical propaganda used in the failed war on drugs, when what’s needed is factual information to educate the public and reduce harm.

The sensationalized title, "Is Meow Meow the new Ecstasy? Meow Meow is easily, and legally, bought over the Internet where it is advertised as plant food". Is going to cause many people (mostly young people) to rush out and buy some before its too late. Even stating that it is sold as plant food on the Internet right in the subtitle then mentions that it will soon be illegal. Back to facts, so many inaccuracies and exaggerations only further proves that all supposedly unbiased reporting must be seriously questioned and examined prior to accepting any of it as fact. The MSM lacks the vocabulary to properly describe what they pitch as a new drug threat. According to them, usually everything is comparable to either MJ, XTC or LSD. This is not only completely false, but it influences young people and/or the under informed to seek these compounds out to experiment with as legal alternatives when in reality research chemicals could potentially have far more severe side effects then the familiar illegal substances they are being compared to.  Even worse they have minimal history of human use and often little to no clinic or scientific research proving they are safe to use. The complete opposite can also be true. Many psychoactive substances which are commonly found online and are in danger of being made illegal are safer then alcohol or tobacco and can be beneficial to the user. As is the case with most Ethnobotanicals. One good example is Kratom which is an extremely effective analgesic comparable in effect to some opiate based medications only it is NOT addictive and is less toxic then Tylenol. It is also successfully used to reduce the effects of opiate withdrawal, helping END addiction for many. Why demonize and propagandize against the non-culturally sanctioned psychoactive substances (everything except alcohol, sugar, tobacco, TV & caffeine)? That's too big of topic for discussion here and now. Enough of my thoughts on this article. Lets get to the important question. Has anyone tried this and is it any good? What are the real dangers / side effects? I haven't even heard of it until this article came out =o)

Be smart, be safe...Thanks to: Jonathan & DoseNation!

From: DoseNation

Meow Meow (mephedrone) is easily, and legally, bought over the internet where it is often advertised as plant feed. When taken as a tablet, or snorted as a powder, it gives a similar high to Ecstasy and abuse has taken off in the UK over the past couple of years.

The drug is likely to be one of the first items on the agenda for Professor Les Iversen, the Government's new drugs czar. Other "legal highs" such as BZP (a derivative of a worming agent) and GBL (paint stripper) have now been reclassified as Class C drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act, but mephedrone -- and a similar drug, salvia or "herbal ecstasy" (the leaves of the Mexican plant Salvia divinorum)-- are now under review...
Users of Meow Meow report an amphetamine-type euphoria that comes with mental and physical stimulation, talkativeness and feelings of empathy. Physical changes include dilated pupils, increased heart rate and blood pressure, sweating, flushing and goose bumps... most don't report any significant hallucinations.

The effects start to become noticeable within half an hour of taking a tablet or within a couple of minutes of snorting the drug and last for anything up to four hours (less if snorted).

The downside includes a strong desire to take more, rapid changes in body temperature (sweating or chills), paranoia, palpitations, panic attacks and muscle spasms. A hangover the next morning tends not to be too much of a problem and it is not known whether Meow Meow is addictive -- although a number of cases have started to trickle through into NHS drug treatment centers.

» The complete article is at: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/expert_advice/article6989754.ece

More info is available at

Erowid Information / Experiences

Wikipedia

New Hope For Addicts?

An epilepsy drug may help alcoholics stop drinking.
By Temma Ehrenfeld
NEWSWEEK

Donald Elbel remembers sneaking into the garage as a 10-year-old to steal beers from his dad's cooler. By the time he was 40 and working as a mechanic in Kendalia, Texas, Elbel was chugging 35 Lone Stars a day. He knew his life was in danger--he once slammed his car into a telephone pole at 80 miles an hour and, after a short detour to the hospital, ended up in jail. He tried everything from Alcoholics Anonymous to hospital detox, but he couldn't give up the brew. Then, in 1998, Elbel volunteered for a clinical trial of a drug called topiramate, a well-known seizure medication. He wasn't required to stay sober, but after a few days of oral medication, he lost interest in drinking. "I went around at first saying 'Something's missing,' but I didn't know what," says Elbel. "The doctors had to tell me I was missing the craving." Though he took the drug for only three months, Elbel hasn't touched a beer in seven years.

It sounds like magic, but over the past decade scientists have come to better understand how the addicted brain works. And they are using that knowledge to study several existing drugs as potential treatments for the millions enslaved by their cravings. The leading candidate may be topiramate, known commercially as Topamax. For years, epileptic patients reported that it helped them fight food cravings and lose weight. Now, in addition to helping alcoholics, the drug shows promise in early studies with binge eaters, smokers and even gamblers. Because these drugs have a record of safety, doctors may legally use them to treat addiction long before they are officially approved for that purpose, a practice known as off-label prescribing.

Addiction is a kind of brain damage. In a normal brain, a neurotransmitter called glutamate is released when a person experiences desire. It's essentially a "go" signal. Counteracting glutamate is a neurotransmitter called GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), an inhibitor that keeps glutamate and other go signals from overwhelming us. The strength of a craving depends on the balance of glutamate and GABA in the brain. When an addict confronts a martini or cigarette, theory has it, GABA is overwhelmed by glutamate--desire trumps inhibition. The brain then becomes flooded with dopamine, our master pleasure chemical, reinforcing the original desire.

Topiramate works on both ends of the GABA-glutamate seesaw: it reduces the release of glutamate and enhances the release of GABA. In the Texas study Elbel took part in, 17 percent of hard-core drinkers stayed dry for at least a month while taking the drug. An additional 20 percent cut back from heavy consumption to more normal levels. The drug does have side effects, most commonly mental fuzziness, but patients tend to stick with it, says study author Bankole Johnson of the University of Virginia. A multisite study to confirm his findings is underway.

None of the currently approved treatments for alcoholism acts on the mechanism of addiction as directly as scientists would like, and none has achieved wide-spread acceptance or success. The oldest and best-known is disulfiram, or Antabuse, which makes people vomit as soon as they drink but doesn't reduce cravings. Two other drugs, acamprosate and naltrexone, seem to cut cravings, but each has disadvantages. Acamprosate works well only if patients stop drinking before treatment. If they relapse, acamprosate keeps them from bingeing as badly. Naltrexone also moderates binges and can be taken while the patient continues to drink, but may be most effective only for people with a specific genetic vulnerability.

Meanwhile, up north in Fairbanks, Alaska, internist Linda Garcia has already treated two dozen alcoholics with topiramate, along with hypnosis and nutritional supplements. "My patients tell me that they no longer have the fear that comes with craving," says Garcia, who is especially happy that she's beginning to attract patients from the hard-hit Alaska Native population.
In addition to topiramate, other established drugs are being studied as potential treatments for addiction. Among them are baclofen, a common muscle relaxant that enhances GABA, and N-acetylcysteine, used to treat Tylenol overdoses, which inhibits glutamate. Scientists don't yet know which of these, if any, will emerge as effective and reliable treatments for addiction. But there's hope, and for people like Donald Elbel, that's something to live for.

URL: http://www.newsweek.com/id/50083