A Look at the Genetics of Addiction
Can addiction be genetic? Is addiction hereditary? These are questions you might have if you or someone you care about is battling substance use disorder, also known as SUD. Genetics plays a role as a risk factor for many diseases, and addiction is certainly one of them. Certain genes might make you more susceptible to using drugs and alcohol. Approximately half of your susceptibility might be in your genes. However, that doesn’t make your odds of developing an addiction 50/50 with a family history of this condition. Environmental factors play a huge role, too.
How Much of Addiction Is in Your Genes?
Addiction is partly genetic, but it’s not entirely that way. You should know that SUD is a form of chronic relapsing brain disorder. Some families have a history of conditions such as diabetes or heart disease. Genetics likewise does the same with addiction. This is a significant factor but doesn’t paint the entire picture. A genetic predisposition to addiction isn’t a guarantee that you will develop one. You do have the power to prevent this condition if you’re at high risk, and you can retake control of your life if you are already dealing with addiction.
Are There Known Addiction Genes?
Known genetic relationships to addiction happen through inherited dopamine levels. Dopamine is one of your brain’s neurotransmitters that works as a feel-good hormone and serves as a reward center. When your dopamine levels are high, your impulse control declines, and you’re at higher risk of addictive behaviors. This alone doesn’t make addiction your destiny, but you might have a predisposition that puts you in danger.
Human beings have many different genes in their physical makeup, and there isn’t one that scientists have identified as being the sole gene responsible for addiction risk. There are multiple genes known to be risk factors for addiction. Research is still happening, but several genes are already known to heighten the risk of or protect against addiction.
ADH1B and ALDH2
ADH1B is short for alcohol dehydrogenase 1B, and ALDH2 is an acronym for mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase 2. Both of these genes impact how the human body metabolizes alcohol. Genetic differences that lower ALDH2 activity or higher ADH1B activity might mean an individual goes through uncomfortable symptoms when they consume alcohol. Due to this, these gene expression variations might protect a person against alcoholism.
CHRNA2
People who have low levels of the CHRNA2 gene might be at higher risk of marijuana addiction. This gene plays a crucial role in the brain’s nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, which are involved in the neural mechanisms of addiction. Studies suggest that variations in CHRNA2 can influence an individual’s susceptibility to cannabis dependence.
CUL3, PTGER3, and PDE4B
The trio of CUL3, PTGER3, and PDE4B genes were identified as being associated with alcohol use and smoking, depending on their prevalence and level of expression. This was the result of studying an international database of human genome data, and the analysis pinpointed hundreds of variants that impacted addiction risk.
CHRM2 and GABRA2
CHRM2 and GABRA2 are both genes connected to alcoholism. In particular, these two genes seem to be strongly linked with early-onset cases of alcoholism.
HIST1H2B
HIST1H2B was identified in one research study as having an impact on addiction. Specifically, it relates to cocaine dependence.
COMT, MAOA, and SLC6A4
COMT, MAOA, and SLC6A4 are three genes that relate to stress resilience. Individuals who express these genes might react differently to stressful conditions. In conjunction with other factors, their risk level of addiction can vary.
Genetics and Heredity
Many people use the words genetics and heredity to mean the same thing. While they’re closely related, there are crucial differences between the two. Genetics is the study of heredity or genes. DNA units make up genes that pass down from parents to children, and these genes determine many different traits.
Your chromosomes house your genes, and you have around 20,000 genes stored there. You have 46 total chromosomes structured in 23 pairs. Half of each pair comes from your mother, and the other half was inherited from your father. The pairings are random, so siblings can have differences even when sharing both parents in common. Most people share half their genes with their first-degree relatives, including children, siblings, and parents.
Heredity is how various traits and characteristics get passed down from generation to generation via changes in DNA sequence and genetics. When you have inherited traits, they are determined genetically. However, not every trait is entirely genetic, and environmental factors determine gene expression in many cases. Having said this, heredity does determine some traits, and eye color and height are two specific examples.
Given that some diseases linked to particular genes pass on from parents to children, some conditions run in multiple generations of a family. Still, various environmental factors can change DNA. Sometimes, a single gene mutation might result in a disease; cystic fibrosis is one example. On the other hand, other health conditions, such as addiction, develop due to multiple environmental factors and genetic influences. How those influences and factors interplay also matters a great deal.
Even if you’re genetically predisposed to addiction, you’re not bound to develop one. You’ll also need access to a specific drug and choose to use it more than once in many cases. Exposure to specific environmental factors might also be necessary to develop an addiction.
Environmental Factors Also Matter
When predicting addiction risk, your family tree doesn’t sit alone. Your surroundings also matter a great deal in terms of creating opportunities for addiction risk. Several different factors play potential roles in your susceptibility to substance use disorder.
Brain Changes and Learned Behaviors
Addiction doesn’t always happen the first time you use a related substance. However, many forms of drugs and alcohol do make you feel good enough that you want it again. Repeated use alters the brain, and the reward center is specifically impacted. You might feel stressed when you don’t use the substance enough. Learned behaviors and conditioned cues, such as seeing others using drugs or alcohol, both in imagery and in real life, can reinforce your desire to use the addictive substance again.
Easy Access to a Drug or Alcohol
Exposure and availability to addictive substances might lead to future use. This is a higher risk when people are exposed to them at home and at young ages. Adverse childhood experiences might include neglect, abuse, and witnessing domestic violence. Parental complications can include rejection, insufficient supervision, bad role modeling, parents who used substances themselves, and a void of emotional warmth and support. These events or circumstances can impact emotional development, social skills, decision-making, and impulse control, all of which are factors contributing to or safeguarding against substance use disorder later in life.
Inflammation
Research is ongoing, but some studies suggest that neuroinflammation might have a role to play in the development of substance use disorder. Evidence indicates that neuroinflammatory processes can alter brain function and neurocircuitry, potentially increasing vulnerability to addiction. Additionally, this link between neuroinflammation and addiction could open new avenues for treatment strategies targeting the inflammatory pathways in the brain.
Mental Health Disorders
Several psychiatric factors might have genetics behind them. Specific complications frequently associated with substance use disorder include personality disorder, major depression, and schizophrenia.
Peer Pressure
The friends and acquaintances around you can be a driving force to take up smoking, drinking, and drug use. Needing to fit in within your surrounding social community is a basic human need for personal acceptance. Still, the desire to do so can result in poor choices in some situations.
Traumatic Stress
A personal history of traumatic events has a known connection to a higher risk of substance abuse. Individuals who experience traumatic stress often turn to substances as a coping mechanism to alleviate the emotional and psychological distress associated with their trauma. Furthermore, the American Psychological Association highlights that the impact of trauma can significantly alter brain chemistry and stress responses, making individuals more susceptible to substance use disorders.
Your Neighborhood
Certain communities make it easier for residents to develop substance use disorder. Specific factors might include high levels of unemployment, lax community standards about drugs and alcohol, young people starting substances, easy access to addictive substances, high rates of crime, and low economic standards.
Preventing Addiction
Your susceptibility to substance use disorder is impacted by genetics, but it doesn’t guarantee that you’ll develop an addiction. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to prevent addiction. They’re also not a sure thing. However, the more you do them, the more likely you can keep living a clean, sober life.
The first thing that you should do is know how addiction starts so you can avoid moments in your life that might lead you down a path you don’t want to go down. Don’t look to get high or intoxicated every time you use an addictive substance. Avoid using addictive drugs for recreational intentions, whether they’re prescribed or illicit. If you are prescribed potentially addictive medication, don’t abuse it or talk to your healthcare provider about alternatives.
Second, get any help you need for mental health issues. Several conditions mentioned above have genetic aspects that might make you more susceptible to addiction, but any mental health conditions might lower your defenses against substance use disorder. Post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety can weaken the coping skills you need to alleviate symptoms that alcohol and drugs might seem like natural remedies for. Learning stress-management skills and becoming adept at them can give you outlets other than addictive substances.
Third, don’t put yourself in positions where peer pressure and temptation might happen. You might need to rethink unhealthy relationships or friendships. If you’re constantly surrounded by others who use alcohol and drugs, then you’re more likely to as well. Whether or not they’re battling addiction themselves might not even matter. This is particularly crucial for teenagers and young adults, but everyone feels peer pressure and the need to conform.
Free Confidential Assistance Is Here When You Need It
We offer the National Rehab Hotline to anyone struggling with addiction and substance use disorder who needs immediate help. Our crisis specialists are available 24/7, every day of the year. Whether you call for yourself or out of concern for someone you care about, we can give you useful information about addiction and mental health before guiding you through the next steps to getting better. Consult us about local resources, treatment recommendations, or support for interventions and immediate crisis response. Reach us anytime at 866.210.1303.