According to the World Health Organization, the use of psychoactive substances is responsible for 450,000 deaths annually, and harmful alcohol use for 3.3 million deaths, while being associated with at least 60 different diseases and additionally burdening the health and daily life of people in the environment of the dependent individual. These are two characteristic aspects of the phenomenon of addiction, which remains timeless and is characterized by constant transformations and new challenges. And this is because addiction is closely related to the very nature of human beings, who seek pleasure, enjoyment, and reward, but are trapped in their compulsive pursuit, often losing control of their behavior and the ability to manage their personal lives. And of course, this applies not only to addictions to addictive psychoactive substances, but also to behavioral addictions, which touch on many aspects of human life: internet use, gambling, diet, sexual activity, or physical exercise.

Today, the scientific community considers addiction to be a chronic brain disease determined by environmental, pharmacological, and genetic-biological factors. This perception has been adopted by the specialized scientists who contribute to this book. They present the current scientific views on addictions, avoiding demonization, and outline in an accessible, concise, but comprehensive way the basic knowledge and key points of the field of "addictionology".

The book is addressed to students (medicine, pharmacy, biology, nursing, psychology, neuroscience, and more), professionals in the healthcare field, but also to the wider reading audience who wants to be responsibly informed about this specific topic.

Written by: Sotiris Athanaselis, Katerina Antoniou, Styliani Vlachou, Christina Dalla, Fotini Deli, Giannis Diakogiannis, Athanasios Douzenis, Evangelos Kafetzopoulos, Nikolaos Kokras, Meni Malliori, Marios Marcellos, Eleftherios Mellos, Georgios Panagis, Panagiotis Panagiotidis, Georgios Papadopoulos, Thomas Paparrigopoulos, Alexia-Victoria Polysidi, Valeria Pomini, Nafsika Pouli, Manina Terzidou, Domna Tsaklakidou