The definition of addiction is not always agreed upon among professionals. In general it would be any type of behavior that becomes compulsive and interferes with an individual’s daily life. Building a tolerance and needing more of whatever activities or substances are being used is often a substantial element of addictions. Finally, losing control over the behavior is the hallmark of an addiction. The following are 10 prevalent addictions affecting men in the United States and all 10 addictions have available treatment support in rehabs for men.
Alcohol
Men are twice as likely as women to be addicted to alcohol. It also takes men approximately five years longer than women to seek help for an alcohol addiction.
Smoking
According to the CDC approximately 20 percent of men in the United States smoke cigarettes. The number of men who smoke by age group is fairly evenly divided.
Drugs
While drug addiction covers a wide range of prescription and street drugs, the most commonly abused drug is marijuana. Painkillers appear to be the prescription drug of choice for men and women.
Gambling
Between 15 and 20 million adults have a gambling problem. The majority are men. Research indicates that men tend to be “action” gamblers, preferring games like poker that take a certain amount of skill. Women, however, are more likely to be “escape” gamblers and participate in games based on luck.
Pornography
Studies have revealed that the same brain changes that occur in drug addicts occur in those addicted to pornography. Men between the ages of 18 and 24 make up the largest percentage of men using pornography on a regular basis.
Cell Phone
Nomophobia is the official term for anxiety if there isn’t access to mobile technology. Nearly 47 percent of men have two phones. If a guy constantly checks his phone before getting out of bed each morning or can’t get through the first course in a restaurant without texting, there may be a problem.
Work
This is a tough addiction to pinpoint since a hardworking man is often viewed as successful. About 25 percent of American men work more than 50 hours each week. While working long hours is not necessarily a problem, when it interferes with health or personal relationships it may qualify as an addiction.
Sex
Sex addictions are not the same as addictions to pornography. One is primarily living in a fantasy world while the other is actually having sex with another person. About 8 percent of men in the United States suffer from this affliction.
Internet/Social Media
While online addictions are often connected to other addictions such as porn and gambling, constantly visiting places like Facebook and Twitter can also become a problem. Men may be especially susceptible to social media addiction because it’s an easy way for them to connect to others while still remaining disconnected on a certain level.
Food
Yes, men can struggle with food addictions, though usually not as much as women. Like so many other addictions, the release of dopamine in the brain is the driving influence behind this behavior.
While women’s addictions seem to be more severe, men are more likely to become addicts. Men are also less likely to seek help for their addictive behavior.
Animal studies suggest that high-fat diet during pregnancy has the potential to alter a baby’s developing brain and increase its chances of obesity later in life.
The team at Yale School of Medicine showed diet could change the structure of mice brains.
They argue this could explain why the children of obese parents are more likely to become grossly overweight.
Animal studies suggest that high-fat diet during pregnancy has the potential to alter a baby’s developing brain and increase its chances of obesity later in life
Experts said the study had merit, but brain changes in humans were unproven.
Obesity can run in families and shared eating habits are a major factor.
However, there is evidence that diet during pregnancy can also influence a child’s future waistline, such as through changes to DNA.
The latest foray into the field, published in the journal Cell, shows the structure of the brain itself may be changed.
The experiments on mice showed that mothers on a high-fat diet had pups with an altered hypothalamus, a part of the brain important for regulating metabolism.
These mouse pups were more likely to become overweight and develop type 2 diabetes than the pups of mothers given a normal diet.
Prof. Tamas Horvath, from Yale, says a healthy diet during pregnancy may help to break the cycle of obese parents having obese children.
A preliminary research suggests that web addiction is reflected in brain changes similar to those hooked on drugs or alcohol addiction.
Experts in China scanned the brains of 17 young web addicts and found disruption in the way their brains were wired up.
The researchers say the discovery, published in Plos One, could lead to new treatments for addictive behaviour.
Internet addiction is a clinical disorder marked by out-of-control internet use.
The research team led by Dr. Hao Lei of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Wuhan carried out brain scans of 35 men and women aged between 14 and 21.
Seventeen of them were classed as having internet addiction disorder (IAD) on the basis of answering yes to questions such as, “Have you repeatedly made unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back or stop Internet use?”
Specialized MRI brain scans showed changes in the white matter of the brain – the part that contains nerve fibres – in those classed as being web addicts, compared with non-addicts.
There was evidence of disruption to connections in nerve fibres linking brain areas involved in emotions, decision making, and self-control.
Dr. Hao Lei and colleagues write in Plos One: “Overall, our findings indicate that IAD has abnormal white matter integrity in brain regions involving emotional generation and processing, executive attention, decision making and cognitive control.
“The results also suggest that IAD may share psychological and neural mechanisms with other types of substance addiction and impulse control disorders.”
Prof. Gunter Schumann, chair in biological psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College, London, said similar findings have been found in video game addicts.
He said: “For the first time two studies show changes in the neuronal connections between brain areas as well as changes in brain function in people who are frequently using the internet or video games.”
Commenting on the Chinese study, Dr. Henrietta Bowden-Jones, consultant psychiatrist and honorary senior lecturer at Imperial College London, said the research was “groundbreaking”.
She added: “We are finally being told what clinicians suspected for some time now, that white matter abnormalities in the orbito-frontal cortex and other truly significant brain areas are present not only in addictions where substances are involved but also in behavioural ones such as internet addiction.”
Dr. Henrietta Bowden-Jones said further studies with larger numbers of subjects were needed to confirm the findings.
