by Hannah Rice Myers

Created on: November 21, 2011

You are a product of your environment, or so it has been said. A risk factor is not a definitive cause of addiction, but rather a characteristic increasing your chances of an addiction to drugs or alcohol.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse explains the greater the number of environmental risk factors, the greater your vulnerability to addiction, estimating40 to 60 percent of risk factors account for a person's vulnerability of addiction. Recognizing these factors may give you the opportunity to eliminate as many as possible, thus decreasing your risk of substance abuse.

*Parental Example

Children learn by the examples you set as a parent. If your child witnesses you smoking cigarettes, consuming alcohol regularly or using illegal substances, he may believe this is an acceptable way of life. The influence of the home life is usually the most important. The University of Utah agrees, stating children are more likely to abuse drugs when their parents have a favorable attitude toward these substances.

*Traumatic Childhood Experiences

Children who experience the loss of a close family member, are the victim of physical or emotional abuse or who suffer from neglect are more prone to addiction, according to HelpGuide.org. Drugs and alcohol help fill voids in their lives, numb their emotional pain and can assist in detachment from an unpleasant situation. Adults who do not find a healthy way of coping with these childhood experiences may develop a drug addiction later in life.

*Peer Pressure

The goal of most children is acceptance among their peers, even if this means taking part in activities such as drinking alcohol or using cocaine. Although your child may know the action is wrong, she gives little thought to the long-term repercussions. Soon, her ability to make sound judgement disappears, replaced by the feelings of pleasure only the drug of choice can give her. Addiction has set in when her initial intention was to fit in with her peers. This environmental factor applies to adults as well. Perhaps you want to impress the co-workers at your new job, and so you try a hallucinogen such as acid, or a line of cocaine. Peer pressure can affect everyone at any age, just as addiction can.

*Your Community

Choose your community carefully; some tend to favor drugs and alcohol more than others, increasing your risk of addiction, according to University of Utah. Before moving, perform an on-line search. This tells you the crime rate of the area, the population and provides information on the school district. Doing this is known as a protective risk factor and reduces your risk of addiction.

Although you cannot eliminate all risk factors for substance abuse, taking as many preventative measures as possible may make a difference. Stopping a problem before it starts is easier than coping with the problem once it begins.

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