In recent years, the National Institute on Drug Abuse has been focusing a large amount of research on identifying and understanding differences in the ways that women and men react to and are at risk of abuse and addiction, and also the differences of how they react to drug treatment. Although addiction is caused by various underlying issues, in both men and women, the way each genders reacts to addiction and treatment does differ. Researchers believe that realizing these differences and then incorporating the knowledge into substance abuse prevention and treatment programs can increase effectiveness. NIDA-supported research shows that women and men tend to abuse different drugs, that drugs and alcohol do have differing side effects for women and men, and that some treatment methods are more effective depending on the gender of the client.
Interestingly, research shows that women and men seem to differ in their susceptibility to become addicted to certain drugs. Both genders show equal likelihood to become dependent on tobacco, cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, and inhalants, however, women are more likely than men to become dependent on sedatives, tranquilizers, anxiety medications or sleeping pills, and are less likely than men to abuse alcohol or marijuana. Women in treatment programs are also more likely than men to have attempted suicide and to openly report a history of sexual abuse or physical abuse. At Passages Malibu, we offer over 16 different treatment modalities to create customized programs for each of our clients. If you or someone you know needs treatment, contact Passages today.
