What Is a Definition of a “Drug Additiction” vs. a “Drug Dependancy.”?

Question by Spanky: What is a definition of a “drug additiction” vs. a “drug dependancy.”?
Diabetics may be drug dependant on insuline for good health, but they are not “addicts” Can someone place into words a good definition of drug dependancy vs. drug addiction. I need to seperate the two for agrument sake and differentiate the two. A drug dependancy in the case of the diabetic seems to promote good health by watching sugar levels, but drug dependancy seems to have a negative position, promoting bad habits. I am just not sure how to define the two differances.

Best answer:

Answer by Stephen
the distinction is why and how the drugs are used. Drug dependance means that you body requires the drud (with opioids this is to prevent withdrawal symptoms as well as treating the underlying problem).
Drug addiction is where drugs are used not for their theraputic value but to “get high” or for other reasons. This leads to a lifestyle where seeking the drug becomes the most important thing and may lead to illegal activities to obtain the drug.

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