Many people tend to romanticize addiction as something that only happens to the homeless, someone on welfare—someone with less opportunities in life. Well, that’s not entirely true. Addiction occurs throughout a much greater spectrum. It is a common mistake to assume that poverty predisposes addiction, because it is an array of factors that contributes to a likelihood of substance use disorder. It is true that the lower the income, the more likely one is to become addicted. But it’s a little more complicated than that.
For example, lawyers are one of the professions most likely to develop addiction. There’s likely varying reasons for this, including the demands of the profession and the potential for high levels of stress that might be countered with substance use disorder—self-medicating and the presence of co-morbid illnesses becomes higher. But as for employment, how does that affect addiction? In a 2011 survey, those surveyed and found to be unemployed, abused alcohol at a rate 10% less than those employed. Another survey in 2010 showed that 9.6% those employed showed evidence of using illicit drugs, as opposed to 2.6% of those unemployed. Levels of education are also associated with propensity for substance use disorder—in fact, a higher education seems to be associated with a lowered risk of developing a substance use disorder disorder. A study conducted in 1987 found that the more educated your parents are, the less likely are your chances for developing an addiction.
As far as the genetics of addiction predispose the onset, an individual is about 40-60% more likely to develop an addiction if they are related to addicts—not an uncommon fact. There are varying reasons for becoming addicted to drugs or alcohol as an individual living in poverty. The urge to use can be based in both biological and environmental factors. A predisposition for substance use disorder is usually in part genetic, and one’s environment as a child can influence the likelihood of addiction. But overall, it’s always important to remember that it’s a combination of many factors that contributes to addiction, and not one rule alone—so, simply growing up in poverty alone does not indicate a future substance use disorder disorder.
Stay tuned for more on how economic status can affect your likelihood for substance use disorder.
