What do you believe about addiction?
Do you believe addiction is a disease?
Do you also believe addicted people have their addictions because of a genetic predisposition?
If you answered 'yes' to either or both these questions then we want to challenge those beliefs.
Are you up to it?
Have you heard of the Baldwin Research Institute?
The Baldwin Research Institute, Inc. is a New York State Corporation with the mission to research and develop programs for recovery from drug and alcohol problems, guide the drug and alcohol treatment industry and be a force for change, research and develop drug and alcohol abuse prevention programs and to honestly and objectively educate the public as to the effectiveness of treatment and prevention program with respect to drug and alcohol abuse.
We encourage you, REALLY encourage you to grab ten minutes and visit their website to read the article titled Alcoholism : A Disease of Speculation. We have linked the title to their page.
We have also taken a few key paragraphs from the article and posted them below. Hopefully this will entice you to read the full article. However, be warned! Your beliefs are going to be severely challenged.
Obsessive drinking is not a reaction to bodily processes, but merely a choice.
The truth is a predisposition for substance abuse, if it does exist, has no bearing on subsequent behaviors. Chemical processes do not make a person an alcoholic. The person makes the conscience choice.
While researchers work hard to prove the disease concept sound and verifiable, repeatedly studies refute the impact of genetic predispositions.
True scientist and medical professionals know, beyond reasonable doubt, the truth about alcoholism and substance abuse.
The disease concept strips the substance abuser of responsibility. A disease cannot be cured by force of will; therefore, adding the medical label transfers the responsibility from the abuser to caregivers. Inevitably the abusers become unwilling victims, and just as inevitably they take on that role. In retrospect then, the disease concept has effectively increased alcoholism and drug abuse.
History and science have shown us that the existence of the disease of alcoholism is pure speculation. Just saying alcoholism is a disease, doesn't make it true.
. . . programs that teach control and choice are far more successful than programs that teach the disease concept. While conventional treatment methods result in a 3 percent success rate after five years, programs that do not teach the disease concept, and instead teach choice, have success rates of 86 percent after five and even 10 years (Baldwin Research Institute 2003).
In conclusion, after reviewing the available research from both sides of the debate, the belief in the disease of alcoholism, creates the existence of the disease. Organizations and institutions that promote the disease concept are, in many cases, doing irreparable harm to the individual and performing a disservice to the population as a whole.
Geneticists are aware that a predisposition does not dictate subsequent behavior, and treatment professionals are aware that the programs they offer, fail. It is an outright injustice when faced with the facts. Stripping human beings of their ability to choose is damaging, whereas giving them back the power of their own volition is essential for recovery.
Alcoholism (addiction) is a choice, not a disease.
Source: 'Alcoholism : A Disease of Speculation', Baldwin Research Institute, www.baldwinresearch.com
Michael Searles
Straight Talking Answers on Alcohol Related Problems
Related Stories: | Topics:Ethonomics, addiction, alcohol, disease, alcoholism, genetics, Health and Fitness, Mental Health, Addiction and Recovery, Baldwin Research Institute, Alcoholism |
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Recent Comments | 1 Total
October 31, 2009 at 1:45am by Danniy DeWeird
I can agree with the reasoning that alcohol isn't a disease, per se. I believe it is a conscious choice to partake in things that alter your mind. But in my view, "disease" is simply the wrong word for addiction. Addicts are still in need of medical help, just like anyone with a major disease. And even if you took away the disease label, the need for drug addiction treatment would still be high. Many drugs are so harmful they bring along other conditions and disorders with them. I wouldn't be so bold as to say the simple labeling of it creates more addicts. If you're going to assign blame to any rise in drug use, I would reserve that for the drug laws. I would think, and this is just me, that the experts who decided it was a disease would lobby government for more fundamental reform of our drug laws, since the two go hand in hand.