Summary Of Addiction Is Not A Disease By Michael Craig Miller

Superior Essays
Lydia Chakalos
Professor J. Hughes
English 120
16 October 2016
Rough Draft of Pro/ Con Essay The topic, addiction, is very stigmatized. In the article, “Addiction Is Not A Disease” By Gene M. Heyman, he takes the opposing side of Michael Craig Miller’s, “Addiction Is A Brain Disease”. Heyman’s article concludes his beliefs on how addiction is not a disease. He writes about his opinion on why he believes such, and sometimes backs up his claims. Miller believes that addiction is in fact a mental disorder. The article, “Addiction Is a Brain Disease”, is by Michael Craig Miller, who is an editor in chief of the Harvard Mental Health Letter. Miller believes that addiction is not a shortcoming of your character, yet it is something wrong with
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For instance, he goes into detail when he talks about dopamine in the brain when using drugs such as heroin. He understands that addiction is all in your head, and it isn’t a decision you willingly make. Miller had researchers from Harvard helping him expand his research and his knowledge on the subject, so this is a very credible article. Miller also states that not only the neurotransmitter, Dopamine, is released when on drugs, but also others. Naltrexone is brought up in the article, and how the drug works to reduce the use of heroin. He also mentions another drug that’s called Acamprosate and adds that it aids in reducing the craving of drugs. His mention of the drugs and how they work gives the author credibility. His research is precise and to the point. There aren’t any comments implying the author’s opinions or …show more content…
Heyman, although a doctor, doesn’t necessarily meet all the requirements of being a completely credible source. He uses phrases such as, “My hunch”, implying that that is his opinion. If you’re using an opinion in a factual article, that defeats the point of being factual. He also uses statistics in his article, but doesn’t conclude where those statistics came from. He states that he did research on whether addicts are usually long-term users and if anything helps them stop using drugs. He doesn’t include how many people he researched on. His results may not be as accurate since he is potentially working with such a small group of addicts. A small number of people cannot be credited toward all addicts

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