Being too impulsive is genetic and a risk for addiction
April 24, 2009 by Grace Ibay
Filed under Health
Human beings, and especially children, have a natural tendency to act on impulse rather than thought. But children get a better handle on their impulses as they grow older, and they learn to delay gratification to get something they want.
Alcohol drinks. Image: sxc.hu
On the other hand, a highly impulsive person would rather choose small immediate rewards at the expense of larger, long-term reward. And now, a study from Purdue University found that highly impulsive behavior may contribute to the risk of developing some form of addiction later in life.
“There is increasing evidence that the character trait of impulsivity predisposes towards addiction in all its forms, such as drugs, alcohol, gambling,” said Nicholas J. Grahame, associate professor of psychology at Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis.
Mouse in wine glass. Image: sxc.hu
The researchers selected mice that were genetically predisposed to drinking alcohol (but who knew mice could get drunk?!) and measured how well the mice delayed gratification of a smaller immediate sugar treat in favor a bigger, delayed treat.
The researchers found that mice who have the drinking gene were more impulsive than their low-drinking counterpart. Lead author Grahame believes their results can be extrapolated to humans because humans possess the same abilities as mice to plan for the future. And if that’s the case, then impulsive behavior in humans is also influenced by genes and could become a risk for alcohol addiction.
The results do not mean that highly impulsive children will ultimately grow up to become addictive, because there is the factor of “proper nurture” (environment). However, identifying young people and children with high impulsivities could identify individuals at higher risk for developing some addictive behavior in the future, and so intervene as early in their lives as possible.
The study appears in the April issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research (early view).
via: American Medical Network
Images: sxc.hu/essie82; lockstockb
