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Research published in Addiction Biology by scientists at the University of Bath reveals a new potential mechanism for combatting drug addiction relapse.
Relapsing into drug taking is a big problem in treating addiction, where the majority of addicts return to drug-taking within 12 months of quitting. This is brought into focus by the burgeoning 'opioid epidemic' of prescription as well as recreational opioid drugs, such as morphine and heroin. Addiction relapse is associated with drug-related cues such as places, drug paraphernalia, the drug itself, or stress, highlighting that memories play a key role in addiction relapse.
In this study researchers at Bath, working with colleagues from the University of Surrey and RenaSci, used an animal model to study relapse to morphine seeking behaviour. Rats or mice learned to associate particular environmental cues with morphine. After removal of the drugs, relapse back to drug-seeking behaviour occurred in response to getting the cues again.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 19 2018, @12:29PM
There's also a very large psychological component to addiction, moreso than just having a shitty life. Most addicts have "rituals" of consumption, and just being in a place where they have commonly used causes the body to expect use. Some of the best advice you can give to an addict is to move - not just because different places bring new opportunities, but because they give the recovering addict a relatively "trigger-free" place to exist.