8 NOVEMBER 2025IN MY OPINIONIt took far too long for society and even medical practitioners to recognize addiction as a brain disease instead of failure of character or willpower. Now it's time for the next major shift in how we think about and treat substance use disorders, recognizing that addiction is a whole-body disease.The future of addiction recovery must be integrative and cellular. Why? Because when we attempt to address SUDs without looking at factors like nutrition, inflammation and circadian rhythms, we're ignoring the biological foundation of motivation and cognition.We cannot isolate treatment to only the mind when true recovery occurs in the biological organism. The mind impacts the body and vice versa. Attempts to isolate and treat only the brain of an addicted patient are flawed and futile. Recovery occurs in the biological organism, not just in the mind.ADDICTION: A NETWORK-WIDE DISRUPTIONAddiction affects the entire network of the body, causing neurochemical, immune, metabolic, circadian and nutritional disruptions. Unfortunately, treatment is too often limited to psychological care with little to no regard for system biology and all the ways that a person's body is impacted.For instance, let's look at nutrition and its role in recovery. Nutrient deficiencies are common among those with SUDs. They negatively impact mood and immune function, yet nutrition is often an afterthought among treatment providers. When we consider that nutrients are raw materials for key neurotransmitters such as tryptophan and serotonin that are damaged by chronic substance use, it's clear that proper nutrition is essential for long-term healing.Circadian rhythm, the body's natural clock, is another biological factor that needs more attention in treatment. Addiction disrupts the sleep-wake cycle, in addition to cortisol rhythm and hormone timing, all of which can lead to worsened fatigue, mood swings and increased risk of relapse.The effects of addiction extend even further, from triggering neuroinflammation to depleting antioxidants. These effects cannot be ignored if we want our patients to experience full recovery. For example, those with depleted antioxidants often suffer from mitochondrial damage and impaired energy production, which may lead to excessive fatigue and problems with executive functioning. Worse yet, hormone production, specifically of cortisol and insulin, also gets dysregulated in those struggling with addiction, impacting mood, stress responses and motivation.As the chief medical officer for a leading addiction treatment provider, I see every day the multifaceted ways in which SUDs impact patients, from malnutrition to insomnia. How can we expect our patients to recover when we leave so many biological factors unaddressed?MOVING BEYOND SILOED CAREIn most settings, care providers treat the symptoms of SUDs in silos, neglecting to collect or share the necessary data to gain the full picture of a patient's system regulation. Whole-Body Healing: The Future of Addiction RecoveryBy Dr. Lawrence Weinstein, Chief Medical Officer, American Addiction CentersDr. Lawrence Weinstein is the Chief Medical Officer at American Addiction Centers, a national leader in evidence-based treatment for substance use and co-occurring disorders. With decades of medical experience, he has championed integrative approaches that address the biological, psychological and social dimensions of addiction. His work focuses on advancing whole-person recovery models, emphasizing the importance of nutrition, circadian health and inflammation management in sustaining long-term sobriety and improving patient outcomes.Dr. Lawrence Weinstein
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