Addiction: drugs vs. food
Kayla Lynch
William Armstead
Sociology 1301
11/23/13
Addiction: Food vs. Drugs
Millions of people suffer from an addiction of some sort. A person can actually suffer from addictions to all sorts of things. It’s sad to say the first thing that comes to the minds of pretty much everyone when they hear the word addiction, is drugs. Controversy is at an uproar over whether or not food is addictive. As a matter of fact, food is the last thing on a person’s mind when addiction comes about. Though it’s hard to believe yes, there are tons of people who are addicted to food. Really, one could go on to say that food is even more addicting than drugs. Compare the number of overeaters in America to those who are addicted to drugs. Then you’ll see it is clear addiction is a problem in our society, but what’s the difference between the two. While there is a distinct difference in numbers there really isn’t much difference whether it is food addiction or drug addiction. It has been said that by 2011, an estimated 22.5 percent of Americans have abused drugs (National Institute on Drug Abuse). As opposed to the 30 percent who are overeat(Food Addiction Institute ). Looking in from a functionalist perspective one might argue that drug and food addiction are both necessary as a part of society. A functionalist might argue that by having drug and food addicts we bring attention to problems in healthcare. According to the functionalist the addict population may inform and educate the society as a whole about the dangers of addiction and its impact overall. Basically a functionalist would say that it is important to society and is better for society as a whole. On the other hand conflict theorists might argue that by having addicts (and therefore experience discrimination at work, difficulty in social life, premature death and numerous health problems) might deeply ensure the status of the powerful few at the top of the food chain. Conflict theorists might say that addiction
William Armstead
Sociology 1301
11/23/13
Addiction: Food vs. Drugs
Millions of people suffer from an addiction of some sort. A person can actually suffer from addictions to all sorts of things. It’s sad to say the first thing that comes to the minds of pretty much everyone when they hear the word addiction, is drugs. Controversy is at an uproar over whether or not food is addictive. As a matter of fact, food is the last thing on a person’s mind when addiction comes about. Though it’s hard to believe yes, there are tons of people who are addicted to food. Really, one could go on to say that food is even more addicting than drugs. Compare the number of overeaters in America to those who are addicted to drugs. Then you’ll see it is clear addiction is a problem in our society, but what’s the difference between the two. While there is a distinct difference in numbers there really isn’t much difference whether it is food addiction or drug addiction. It has been said that by 2011, an estimated 22.5 percent of Americans have abused drugs (National Institute on Drug Abuse). As opposed to the 30 percent who are overeat(Food Addiction Institute ). Looking in from a functionalist perspective one might argue that drug and food addiction are both necessary as a part of society. A functionalist might argue that by having drug and food addicts we bring attention to problems in healthcare. According to the functionalist the addict population may inform and educate the society as a whole about the dangers of addiction and its impact overall. Basically a functionalist would say that it is important to society and is better for society as a whole. On the other hand conflict theorists might argue that by having addicts (and therefore experience discrimination at work, difficulty in social life, premature death and numerous health problems) might deeply ensure the status of the powerful few at the top of the food chain. Conflict theorists might say that addiction