Opinion: Adopting the term ‘preaddiction’ would be a serious mistake
Adopting the term "preaddiction" could have potentially disastrous consequences for people with substance use disorders.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism recently proposed a new addition to the addiction vernacular: “preaddiction.” The idea is that the word will help identify and intervene on harmful substance use earlier and more effectively.
While it’s an admirable goal, the term fails to align with the evidence. Worse, adopting it could have potentially disastrous consequences for people with substance use disorders — an already marginalized group.
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