Professor Katriona O'Sullivan

And also if you've got addiction in your family.

Like there's a whole these myths, you know, that addictive personality that doesn't exist.

That's not a thing.

Or it's biological.

It's because of your genetics.

We don't actually know whether it's genetics.

What we do know in studies of animals, for example, Ray.

When you put an animal in a deprived situation, in a deprived environment, and then you make cocaine or heroin freely available to that monkey, they will use that drug until they die.

They will continually use it.

And then if you put the same grump of monkeys and you let them grow up with loads of play and love and connection and you make cocaine freely available, they won't get addicted to it.

So deprivation from childhood is one of the biggest predictors of addiction, whether you become addicted.

And so one of the reasons I tell my story is because if we actually solved that deprivation, we would reduce the number of people who are addicted.

You know, we do know why, because I can tell you, I teach this.

I'm not going to bore you, but like.

deprived brains are different to non-deprived brains and then areas where deprivation exists in the brain are the areas that predict whether you become addicted or not so the back of your brain the front of your brain right if you're nourished you have loads of d receptors i'm going to just make it basic english loads of receptors that mean you can make good decisions make good choices and you're not driven by reward ray but if you lack stuff in this reward center you're

It makes you more driven towards finding external things that are looking for reward.

And drugs are rewarding.

And if you grow up deprived, that part of your brain doesn't actually get formed properly.

So deprivation causes a problem in the reward center, which makes us more likely to search for rewarding things.

And drugs are really rewarding.