Natural Reward Pathways Exist in the Brain
The reward pathway reinforces behavior. There are several sections in the brain that control different functions. The reward pathway is located in the center of the brain. This section controls our feelings of motivation, reward and behavior. This pathway is connected to several other important areas of the brain. With this connection it allows the brain to gather information for what is happening outside the brain. When you look at a food that looks tasty, so your five senses send signals to the brain to look and eat the the good looking food. There are also special neurons in the reward pathway to release dopamine, which is in charge of giving you a little jolt of pleasure. The brain loves this feeling so it memorizes it by storing it in the section that is in charge of the memories and behavior so that it will try to get this feeling as much as possible since the memory was so awesome. So this raises the percentage that you will eat food again since you enjoyed it so much. When you eat you don't really think of what you are doing, but your brain has to think about picking up the food, chewing the food, and then swallowing. Because of the jolt of pleasure, the reward pathway repeats the behavior, which is necessary for survival.
Drugs Alter the Brain's Reward Pathway
Within seconds of entering the body, drugs cause dramatic changes on synapses in the brain. The way that the drugs get addicting is by the instant the drugs enter your body your reward pathway get an intense jolt of pleasure, even more pleasure full that eating. When Meth enters the body it fools the cell into dumping loads of dopamine (the chemical that gives you the pleasure) into the synapse, therefore causing the wave of pleasure, which is stronger than the pleasure of eating. The faster a drug is delivered to the brain the more likely it is to be addicting. Most drugs all have different ways of hurting your body, but all in all the final effect is that you are damaging your body yourself for the chemicals in the drugs that trick or fool your cells to think that it is a normal cell/chemical, but in the end it either blocks or makes the chemicals overdose so that the normal functions of the brain can NOT function the normal way. This is why drugs are very dangerous, even if you only have one sip, one puff, or even just a one time thing and you don't get addicted, you have no idea what effects it will have on your body, your brain, or your health.
