Did you know that one in 100 people in the U.S. is experiencing an addition to opiates? Have you wondered how some people can become addicted to something when others do not?
In Episode 4 of The Healthy Matters Podcast I’m joined by my friend and colleague Dr. Charlie Reznikoff – an addiction medicine expert who’s going to help us break down some of the myths and offer insights on how addiction can be treated.
“Addiction is many things,” he explains. “It can result from an untimely exposure to drugs, trauma in childhood mixed with, a little bit of bad genetic luck.”
We also talked about the most addictive drugs and the top one may surprise you. It’s on the “fastest track from outside your body to inside your brain.” Can you guess what it is?
So why do some of us struggle with addiction while others do not? We go into more detail about this and how most of us can simply have one drink or one painkiller and not give it another thought, while others will have concerns or are at a higher risk for addiction.
Dr. Reznikoff also talked about COVID-19’s effect on the opioid crisis and fentanyl’s connection to Wuhan, China. Yes, that Wuhan, China where COVID-19 was first reported.
“Fentanyl is an illicit, highly potent synthetic opioid that is cooked in China, or at least produced in China and shipped to America,” he said. “So when traffic to and from Wuhan was shut down in 2020, the shipments of fentanyl also became limited and those addicted to it had to find other sources, which created the ‘perfect storm of perfect storm badness.’”
Episode 4 of The Healthy Matters Podcast also covers addiction questions about alcohol, nicotine and even caffeine – as well as a brief discussion about the best and most expensive cup of coffee we’ve ever had.
