Markus Heilig is one of the world’s leading experts in the field of addiction diseases. He is a professor of psychiatry and director of the Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience (CSAN) at Linköping University.
The current focus of his research is alcohol dependency. As alcohol is so widely used and socially accepted, it has a greater negative impact on life and health than any other drug. But not everyone who drinks alcohol develops alcohol dependency. What causes some people to develop an addiction and others not?
“I hope I can help people see those with addiction problems with new eyes. That it’s not a character defect or a ‘snap out of it’ problem, but that a person’s genes make them vulnerable, and that the circumstances of life play a role in that vulnerability,” says Markus Heilig.
At CSAN, advanced research in neuroscience meets the practical patient work at the hospital. Collaboration between medical science, brain research and psychiatry is the only way to address the rise in alcohol-related diseases.
“We are among the best in the world at what we do. We have what it takes, both to try to understand and treat these diseases and to offer training and interventions to actors who meet those affected,” says Markus Heilig.
