An addiction is defined as a behavior that interferes with a person's life and creates some kind of negative consequence. One of the most significant negative consequences of any addiction is the terrible impact it can have on your physical and mental health.
Addictions can play a role in a staggering number of health complications. Drinking alcohol could trigger migraines in some people, while headaches are a common symptom of excessive drinking and hangovers. Alcohol also causes many problems that could lead to heart attack: it can raise the blood pressure, damage the structure of the heart, and an overdose of alcohol could stop the heart entirely. Heart attacks may also occur due to amphetamine use or because of heart disease caused by drug abuse.
Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), causing a variety of mental, physical, and developmental disabilities in the baby. Peptic ulcers, liver cancer, and other liver disorders may also result from heavy drinking. Smoking leads to a wide variety of health complications, including ulcers, stroke and heart disease, and many kinds of cancer.
Intravenous drug users put themselves at a heightened risk of infections, including hepatitis B and HIV. Both infections can spread through shared needles or through sexual contact with an infected person.
As if the toll on physical health weren't enough, addictions also wreak havoc on a person's emotional and mental wellbeing. While depression and anxiety can result from the stresses caused by an addiction, both may also be triggered by the use of certain substances, including anabolic steroids, narcotics, and amphetamines. People who experience the emotional toll of caring for an addict may experience feelings of codependence, a preoccupation with the addict's welfare at the expense of their own health.