Cocaine in the Family

It’s official: Coke-addicted celebrities can blame their parents for their addiction. According to the Guardian, scientists led by Rainer Spanagel, a professor of psychopharmacology at the Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim, Germany, believes he has pinpointed the gene that controls cocaine addiction. The study looked at 670 cocaine addicts and more than 700 non-users, and found addicts were 25% more likely to carry the gene than non-addicts. Genetic factors may be responsible for up to 70% of cocaine addiction, meaning that addiction can be inherited.