Alcohol addiction, also called alcohol use disorder, is one of the most widespread and serious mental health challenges globally. According to a report by the World Health Organization in 2018, more than 3 million deaths each year are linked to alcohol use.
Harmful drinking is also responsible for 5.1% of the global burden of disease. This shows how serious the problem of alcohol addiction is worldwide.
A new study from researchers at the University of Warwick has shed light on the physical cause of alcohol addiction. Led by Professor Jianfeng Feng, the research team discovered that the addiction is tied to a brain network responsible for how we respond to danger.
This research, published in Science Advances, gives us a better understanding of how alcohol use disorder forms in the brain.
The medial orbitofrontal cortex (mOFC), located at the front of the brain, plays a key role in detecting situations that are unpleasant or dangerous. When it senses a problem, it sends signals to another part of the brain called the dorsal periaqueductal gray (dPAG).
The dPAG is crucial for deciding how we should respond to these situations, like whether we should escape or fight. This brain network is essential for how we react to negative experiences in life.
The researchers studied MRI scans from the IMAGEN dataset, which includes 2,000 people from the UK, Germany, France, and Ireland. These participants took part in tasks while undergoing MRI brain scans.
During the tasks, when participants did not receive rewards, it caused negative feelings. The study found that people who showed signs of alcohol abuse had reduced communication between the mOFC and dPAG when they experienced these negative feelings.
This imbalance in communication between the mOFC and dPAG can increase a person’s risk of developing alcohol addiction. The researchers identified two main ways this imbalance happens:
Alcohol Inhibits the dPAG: The dPAG helps process negative situations and signals when we should escape or avoid something dangerous. When alcohol inhibits this part of the brain, it blocks these signals.
As a result, a person only feels the good effects of drinking, like relaxation, but not the harmful consequences. This can lead to compulsive drinking, where someone keeps drinking despite the negative effects on their health.
Over-Excited dPAG: In people with alcohol addiction, the dPAG may become over-excited, making them feel like they are always in a state of distress or discomfort. This constant feeling of unease may push them to drink alcohol impulsively as a way to escape these unpleasant emotions.
This new understanding of how alcohol addiction works in the brain opens the door to better treatments. By identifying the brain areas involved in addiction, scientists can develop therapies that target these specific pathways.
This could lead to more effective ways to treat alcohol addiction and reduce its devastating effects on individuals and society.
In conclusion, alcohol addiction is closely linked to how our brain processes negative experiences. The study from the University of Warwick provides important insights into the mechanisms behind this addiction.
With this knowledge, there is hope for more effective treatments and solutions to combat alcohol use disorder and improve the lives of those affected by it.
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