Article Excerpt: People with substance use disorder—whether addicted to alcohol, cocaine, heroin, or nicotine—share a strikingly similar pattern of abnormal brain connections, particularly within the brain’s reward and self-control circuits, according to a new meta-analysis published in Translational Psychiatry. Substance use disorder (SUD) is marked by an ongoing struggle to control drug or alcohol use despite harmful consequences. Scientists have long suspected that this loss of control is tied to changes in the brain’s reward system—the network that helps us experience pleasure, form habits, and make decisions. However, past brain imaging studies have produced inconsistent results, largely due to studies varying in the specific substances used, stages of addiction (e.g., active use versus long-term withdrawal), and the specific brain regions being investigated.
Full Article: https://tinyurl.com/6wejcs7b
Article Source: PsyPost