Is Addiction Hereditary?

The reason I ask is because I find myself addicted to things very easy, I can taste something or do something and I just want to do it more or have more, until someone or something makes me stop. My dad was an Alcoholic and Drug addict (Sober Now) and my mom was a Drug Addict. (Mostly sober) So I'm wondering is it hereditary? Or do you think it is? Like I am gonna be 17 and I don't drink not because its bad or anything just because I'm scared of getting addicted to drinking.

 

I haven't got time to go through all of these, but there seems to be several related studies on this subject.

http://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=2000&q=addiction+hereditary

Regardless, it wouldn't be at all surprising if addiction can be hereditary. The best thing you can do is avoid dangerous and addictive substances.

 

Well it's certainly something you're born with - addictive tendency I mean. People have to get their addictive personalities from somewhere and your genes are probably the most likely cause. I think it's wise to stay away from alcohol.

 

I agree with the above posts, my advice would be to never try stronger drugs such as opiates; I've seen strong characters fall apart and become nothing thanks to these substances.

You're better than addiction, you know it yourself otherwise you wouldn't have created this topic. The fact you're aware of it gives you an advantage, an advantage that many are left without until it's too late.

 

Precisely.

If you can make a conscious decision to confront addiction before it has ever taken hold of you then you are on the right track. Unfortunately- it is evident that you've fallen victim to a very life-ruining pastime already... Runescape.

 

The funny thing is about my addictions, I've never been addicted to the "bad" stuff. Such as tobacco, alcohol, or marijuana.

But I'm addicted to stuff such as facebook, or video games.

 

Be careful, the after effects can be worse than having a physical addiction to a substance. When you are addicted to alcohol or tobacco you're physically harming yourself, either from the smoke inhalation or liver damage; however if you were to stop drinking/smoking at twenty-five then by the time you were fourty/fifty there would be no signs you were a smoker/drinker (source BBC News a few nights ago lol) - this does not include cancer cases from smoke damage/liver damage, of course. In the case of a "virtual" addiction you miss out on the fundamental building blocks to life, such as social skills, and you don't even know it.

This isn't your standard nerd, this is the person who doesn't go out for three weeks and just sits on the PC or watches TV all day; they live in their own world. It's similar to the porn addiction, many teens don't know it but they're not having sex because they're watching too much porn. I'm definitely not saying this is you, but it's an interesting concept to be addicted to the virtual world.

Before you reply to this please bare in mind this is just what I've found from the documentaries I've watched on addiction and from the books I've read, if you disagree you don't have to be abusive; it's possible to have a discussion and walk away feeling like you've learnt something, the key is not being a dick.

 

highly unlikely i would think my family has a long line of drinking and smoking addictions and i don't do either one.

 

What I mean by addiction, is I can hardly go a day without checking my facebook. I'm sure the its the same for everybody else.

 

You may have Genetic Predisposition's, but just dont do it alot if you ever drink.

 

Not really,