A recent study has identified the brain pathways that addictive drugs such as morphine and cocaine manipulate, which may explain how these substances can override natural needs like eating and drinking. The findings, published in the journal Science, reveal that while drugs of abuse activate the same brain areas as natural rewards such as food and water, they do so in significantly different ways, potentially offering new insights into the treatment of addiction in humans. Previous research on addiction has consistently shown that both natural rewards (such as food and water) and drugs of abus…