Surgeon general report: ‘Addiction is not a character flaw’

Murthy’s new report on alcohol, drugs and health is the first in which a surgeon general addresses substance use disorders as a disease the nation can address.

According to Dr. Richard Rosenthal, a professor of psychiatry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, addiction is an illness that requires the same individualized care, “including use of effective medications, as any other chronic medical disorder”.

In the report, called Facing Addiction in America, Murthy discussed the need for laws and programs that explore the science behind addiction and called for a shift away from the idea that addiction is related to “moral failing”.

It’s a position that is supported by local recovery and treatment providers “I think numerous treatment providers have long subscribed to the disease model of addiction”, said Cindy Woodford, Executive Director of First Step Recover in Warren. They affect your ability to make decisions, and change your reward system and your stress response. The center helps young adults conquer substance abuse and addiction while allowing them to continue their college education. In 2015, almost 48 million Americans used an illicit drug or misused a prescription medication, approximately 67 million reported binge drinking in the past month, and almost 28 million self-reported driving under the influence in the past year.

Many news reports have highlighted the ever-growing evidence that some foods can cause addictive changes in the brain similar to those caused by addictive drugs like heroin and cocaine.

The report also says there were almost 21 million people suffering with some sort of addiction disorder past year, but only one in 10 were receiving any treatment.

The de-stigmatizing of addiction and making treatment more available will go a long way in dealing with the crisis, he said. Many people didn’t want to talk to the surgeon general if the press was around, because they were afraid of losing their jobs and friends if anyone found out about their substance use disorder, Murthy explained. More than six out of 10 of these overdoses involved an opioid.

As for illegal drugs, the cost is a total of $193 billion United States dollars per year. Also, of children who try illicit drugs before 13, 70 percent will end up addicted.

“We’ve been talking about this for years, but there is still a lot of misbelief out there that substance abuse and addiction is a moral failure”, he said.

Since 1964, surgeons general have produced major reports on tobacco use, HIV and AIDS, physical activity, mental health, suicide prevention and other concerns.

If money is to be allocated, it has to get into the right hands: treatment centers with a proven track record, he said. National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence.

An estimated 20.8 million people in our country are living with a substance use disorder.

Dr. Dan Brown, with Meridian Community Care, said he agrees with the Surgeon General – that addiction is a serious, chronic medical condition. Until that training has become widespread, Koob and Mason said primary-care physicians should refer patients abusing alcohol to specialists.

Springing a staged confrontation on an addict “may backfire by heightening resistance and diminishing self-esteem on the part of the targeted individual”, the report says. “The recommendation that people who are using a problematic level (of alcohol) be referred to specialists should definitely be implemented”.

Murthy also emphasized another challenge: stigma. Use of tobacco products in America is at an all-time low.

“I always felt like an outsider”, said James Fata.