LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Addiction: Drugs
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Addiction is not a disease as once thought. Addiction is not unchangeable and final. Addiction is merely the accumulation of negative effects that drugs, alcohol, and the lifestyle that accompanies their use. It is true that, collectively, these negative effects can really weigh a person down. It is true that these issues can be very difficult to simply just walk away from. However, it is ... proven that the person’s ability to handle these issues can be raised.
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Addiction is one of the most costly public health problems in the United States. It is a progressive syndrome, which means that it increases in severity over time unless it is treated. The term has been partially replaced by the word "dependence" for substance abuse. Addiction has been extended... to include mood-altering behaviors or activities. Some researchers speak of two types of addictions: substance addictions (for example, alcoholism, drug abuse, and smoking); and process addictions (for example, gambling, spending, shopping, eating, and sexual activity). There was as of 2004 a growing recognition that many addicts are addicted to more than one substance or process.
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Addiction or misuse of alcohol and other drugs leads to approximately 120,000 deaths in the U.S. each year. Improving treatment and preventing substance use can reduce the toll of alcohol and substance use on individuals and society.
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Addiction is a dependence on a substance, such as the drug heroin, or a type of behavior, such as gambling. The dependence is so strong that it may seem as if the person is unable to break away from the dependence.
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Addiction is defined as uncontrollable, compulsive drug craving, seeking and use even in the face of negative health and social consequences. Very few people are able to return to occasional use after becoming addicted.
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The consumption of any psychoactive drug, legal or illegal, can be thought of as comprising three stages: use, abuse, and addiction. Initially the user may consume the drug simply to obtain the resulting pleasurable or other beneficial effects. If use of the drug then escalates to the point where it is interfering with the ability of the user to function normally, use may turn into abuse, and if drug consumption increases further the user may become addicted. People can ... become addicted to other pleasurable activities, including gambling, computer games, exercise, surfing the Internet, or sex.
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