CENTRAL FALLS, Rhode Island (CNN) -- A no-frills bar called Goober's, just north of Providence, Rhode Island, is probably the last place you'd expect to find a debate over cutting-edge addiction therapy. But this is where Walter Kent, a retired mechanic, spends his Fridays. He helps in the kitchen and hangs out in the bar, catching up with old friends. Most addiction specialists would call this playing with fire, or worse. That's because for more than 30 years, Kent was a hard-core alcoholic. His drinks of choice were Heineken beer and Jacob Ginger brandy, but anything with alcohol would do.
"It's like a little kid wanting a piece of candy. You see it, you want the taste of it." He closes his eyes and sniffs the air, remembering the feeling. "You can be by yourself, and all of a sudden get even a hint of alcohol, just the smell of it, and say, 'Oh, I need a drink.' That sensation is not something you can get rid of."
But today, Kent isn't tempted in the least. He says the credit goes to a prescription medication -- a pill called naltrexone. It's part of a new generation of anti-addiction drugs that may turn the world of rehab on its head.
Dr. Mark Willenbring, who oversees scientific research at the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, says alcoholism has reached a point similar to one depression reached 30 years ago -- when the development of Prozac and other antidepressants took mental health care out of the asylum and put it in homes and doctors' offices."There will be a 'Prozac moment,' " Willenbring says, "when primary care doctors start handling functional alcoholics."
Despite studies showing effectiveness, established rehab programs have been slow to adopt the use of medication. At Hazelden in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a small as part of treatment, although a handful of long-time addicts may be referred to a prescribing physician once their stay is over. "Where we battle with [the proportion of patients receive anti-addiction drugs, but medical director Dr. Kevin Clark says the traditional model -- based on intensive therapy and the 12 steps popularized by Alcoholics Anonymous -- is still best. "It is a disease of the brain, but it's a multifaceted disease. It has a spiritual component, a behavioral component to it," says Clark. "Our experience tells us that having the network of support and recovery is what really makes the difference."
Still, medication is slowly creeping into mainstream addiction therapy. One big advocate is Percy Menzies, a pharmacist and former sales representative for DuPont, which developed naltrexone. His St. Louis, Missouri-based Recovery Centers for America treats patients in an on-site hospital, then refers them to outside physicians for follow-up treatment. Along with therapy, virtually every patient is given Vivitrol, a long-lasting form of naltrexone that's given monthly by injection.
http://edition.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/15鈥?/a>|||I had to offer an answer here because there are just too many misconceptions floating around Yahoo Answers and the public in general about addiction. It really amazes me how very little people understand about this. Even the people who are calling themselves professionals are misleading others with their "answers."
1. From a clinical perspective, a person is not "addicted" to something unless physiological withdrawal symptoms occur upon removal of the source.
2. There are many things being labelled "addictions" that should fall under the category of "compulsive behavior." A compulsive behavior is something repeatedly done, but if the activity is stopped there's no physiological withdrawal symptoms. Many things that are called "addictions" (gambling, internet, eating, etc.) are much better understood as compulsive behavior because the source of these behaviors is NOT exclusively biological. For a better example, alcohol and drug addictions are true addictions when they get to the point that upon removal of the drug a person gets uncontrollably ill (unlike the AA model that says once an "addict" always an "addict," which is not really accurate). When a person has a compulsive eating disorder the person does not really get physically ill when not given the chance to openly consume all the food the person desires.
3. By definition, a "psychological addiction" is NOT caused by a physiological source. That means when someone claims to be psychologically addicted to something like using the internet, it is purely a behavioral habit that probably comes with some reward for the individual. However, because of the medical model of mental illness it is still generally assumed that some physiological source (e.g., brain chemistry) is the source of someone's psychological addiction, which is why a psychiatrist will try to treat these individuals with drugs (e.g., anti-depressants). They will assume some underlying disorder has gone undiagnosed (e.g., depression) even if the person doesn't fully qualify for the diagnosis according to the DSM. This is misleading because so-called "psychological addictions" (again, somewhat of a misnomer) can occur without there being an underlying disorder.
4. Drugs like Naltrexone are one of several opiate antagonists, which lessen the brain's dopaminergic activity. They create a chemical IMBALANCE in the brain because the target neurotransmitters don't normally get subdued by drugs. On top of this, if the levels of one neurotransmitter are altered it can affect the levels of other neurotransmitters, furthering a chemical disruption of normal brain functioning. What happens is not quite what research studies suggest, and usually these studies are only short term. The patient is getting subdued by these drugs. Cognitive functioning can become impaired. Side effects are common and can be quite serious in some cases (see below). To further illustrate what I mean, they give Naltrexone to people who qualify for the diagnosis Kleptomania (see here: http://in.reuters.com/article/health/idI鈥?/a> ). At the same time, they've made the case that Naltrexone can cure people's drug addictions. That makes little sense from a behavioral point of view as well as physiology. The same chemical components that cause physiological addiction to a drug are what also causes Kleptomania? Not likely.
5. Given what I've said above, there are biological components to what are true physiological addictions, but if you think a drug like Naltrexone is going to permanently cure this you are really just swapping one drug for another. In fact, you may be creating new problems for yourself. The trend toward biodeterminism (i.e., that physiology is the primary cause of all behavior) has misled people to ignore environmental, social, cultural, existential, spiritual, and experiential factors for so long that psychiatrists can now actually harm patients with presciption drugs and get away with it. So, to answer your question: No, a pill definately does not cure a person from a true drug addiction. If anything, research will show it is more effective than a placebo because the person's brain functioning is being altered in a negative way. A chemical imbalance is being created. In short, the patient is subdued.
Here. In case you think I'm making this stuff up:
Most common side effects of Naltrexone:
ANXIETY; appetite loss; chills; constipation; delayed ejaculation; diarrhea; dizziness; DROWSINESS; FEELING DOWN; headache; INCREASED ENERGY; increased thirst; IRRITABILITY; joint and muscle pain; LOW ENERGY; nausea; NERVOUSNESS; SLEEPLESSNESS; stomach pain/cramps; vomiting.
--notice how the side effects in caps can all be symptoms of a psychological disorder other than addiction?
Most serious side effects of Naltrexone:
Severe allergic reactions (rash; hives; itching; difficulty breathing; tightness in the chest; swelling of the mouth, face, lips, or tongue); abdominal or stomach pain; cramping; dark urine; depression; SUICIDAL THOUGHTS OR BEHAVIORS; unusual tiredness or weakness; vomiting; white bowel movements; yellowing of the skin or eyes (that means LIVER DISEASE. What does alcohol addiction eventually cause? That's right. The same thing: LIVER DISEASE).
The pharmaceutical industry knows that the public is longing for magic bullets. All they have to do is construct research in such a way that they can show their product works better than a placebo, and they've become just as skilled at this as they have with their expertly produced TV commercials.|||In my town, the pain pill addiction is Unbelievable..Now every one wants " Ati van ", What's going on?
Report Abuse
|||I'm surprised the medical community hasn't squashed this into oblivion considering doctors and hospitals will be losing patients if we can cure addiction with simply a pill.|||That seems a little too good to be true, if it helps then I suppose it can only be a good thing.|||I think yahoo answers may come to an end if a simple pill can cure addiction.|||Too good to be true.I wonder what the side effects are!?|||I've found that I have a fairly addictive personality and I obsess over things quite easily. I don't think a pill could help, it's just about realising it and using willpower to fight it. Even if it could I wouldn't take it.|||Naltrexone, has been available to ex-opiate addicts for a long time. If an addict should use an opiate while taking these they won't get any effect, naltrexone blocks the receptors in the brain where the opiate would take effect. All the time the patient keeps taking it there's no point in trying to get any opiate buzz.. If the patient craves the release they once got from opiates they could stop taking the naltrexone and go back to their old ways. It's still a choice they have to make but naltrexone can help. I didn't know that alcoholics could benefit from it as well. Naltrexone is another tool, not a cure all.|||This is a good question.
I firmly believe addiction is the result of emotional deficit...a deficit that is relieved by addiction and the resulting escapism. I know it is said you can have an addictive personality and I would say that too is created through deprivation, usually emotional. A pill may well relieve symptoms but will never resolve them. I don't think it is a disease but becomes so powerful that is consumes the person. I also know from experience how to overcome deficits and the hardest step is realising who is really responsible for change. I wish children who go through care were handled with more love as they are the ones often with the most emotional problems. We all as humans need something to attach to and those raised in love by their parents will form a natural attachment...those who don't will gain attachment to something else...often those substances that take emotional pain away.|||Thanks for the interesting article. I'm no expert, but brain chemistry has a lot to do with our mental states. People who seek out drugs and are the most likely to get addicted have significant differences in their brain's make-up.
The thing is that chemicals are only one kind of addiction. Sex, shopping, gambling, self-abuse, shoplifting. But again, these are usually caused by deficiencies of certain amino acids and ought to be fairly easy to straighten out.
Even the founder of AA, Bill W., found that after he quit drinking, he was still depressed and felt a struggle everyday to not drink.
Maybe you haven't had that experience, but it is a terrible way to live. But then he started taking niacin supplements and began to feel better.
AA, Narcotics, Sex Addicts Anonymous and the like, they all make you dwell on how pathetic you are and how helpless you are and can never truly recover. It works I think, just like beating a child when he breaks something will make him more careful.
If there were an easier way, that wasn't so emotionally draining for an addict trying to recover, I would certainly be for it.|||so what happens when this person stops taking the naltrexone? Will he/she drink again. Being a nurse who has taken pharmacology..i learned that anything can be addictive. Yes it's good that this gentleman has stopped drinking but now he's addicted to this naltrexone. one addiction after another. Most people do not know that you can even get addicted to aspirin. Yes indeed there are people who take it prophalactilly so they won't get a headache. Nothing wrong with that until you realize you need it daily ..then what.
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