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Art therapy, consultations with psychologists, medicines… Scientists have tried many ways to prevent drug addiction. According to recent data, one of them may be an increase in intellectual activity.
The predisposition to addiction is based on neural anomalies, which means that the situation can be changed by influencing neural connections. “Recoding” the brain could strengthen the connections between neurons and make them work properly. But how to make such a conversion? With the help of puzzles and all sorts of games that increase cognitive abilities.
An experiment was conducted in which one group of mice underwent a special program for the development of cognitive abilities for several days. The other group of mice was left in cages where their activity was very limited. A month later, all mice were placed in front of two open boxes, with different contents and different smells. The animals, demonstrating unanimity, chose the same box over and over again. The scientists then decided to change the animals’ preferences and put the cocaine in the box that all the mice consistently refused.
The result was unexpected. Although at first all the mice habitually ran into the drug box, after a few weeks, the group of mice that underwent cognitive training began to refuse the box of cocaine and returned to their previous preferences.
While the experiment only shows a direct link between brain intelligence and drug addiction in animals, similar observations apply to humans as well.
Pass the tests
- Are you influenced by others?
- Which hemisphere is your dominant?
- How addicted are you?
Why do some become drug addicts, while others are able to resist?
One of the experiments involved two groups of people: cocaine addicts and those who tried the drug but did not become addicted. According to research1, those who have tried the drug but have not become addicted have abnormally large frontal lobes. This part of the brain is responsible for decision making and self-control. The researchers believe that the excess gray matter in the frontal lobe helped these people curb their desires. This hypothesis was confirmed when it turned out that in a group of drug addicts, the frontal lobes are surprisingly small, that is, their brains contain less gray matter.
White matter has also been taken into account in studies. Drug addicts had less white matter in the anterior lower lobe and in the anterior cingulate cortex. Such features of the brain have a bad effect on decision making, on the control of impulsive behavior and weaken the instinct of self-preservation.
All these discoveries are forcing scientists to look for more effective ways to prevent drug addiction, in particular, by increasing the amount of gray matter. It is assumed that cognitive training can “recode” the brain of a drug addict and help him return to life.
Read more:
- Hangover syndrome in scientific coverage
Lack of self-control contributes to the development of drug addiction
It has been previously shown that teenagers are more likely to become addicted than adults because some of the cognitive abilities associated with self-control are not fully developed. The study that claims this also insists that schools should revise their curricula or include special courses that will allow teenagers to develop certain brain functions.2.
It is known that some neural anomalies can cause poor cognitive abilities, which, in turn, can lead to a lack of self-control. For example, recent studies have shown that drug addicts often behave impulsively, and this behavior is caused by dysfunction of neural connections in the striatum. Perhaps training the cognitive abilities of addicts with the help of intellectual tests will help overcome addiction. The effect of cognitive training is quite long-lasting. They develop in children and adolescents the ability to make decisions, increase self-control, and therefore reduce the likelihood of drug addiction in the future.
See more at BrainBlogger.
1 O. den Heuvel et al. «Frontal–striatal abnormalities underlying behaviours in the compulsive–impulsive spectrum», Journal of the Neurological Sciences, 2010, №289 (1-2).
2 P. Pokhrel et al. «Adolescent neurocognitive development, self-regulation, and school-based drug use prevention prevention», Science, 2015, №14 (3).