Addictions of today

Professor Michal Miovský, in his lecture, presented the long history of humanity's coexistence with addictive substances, revealing some surprising insights about the relatively recent attitudes toward drugs like heroin, cocaine, and cannabis. We also learned about the complexities of preventing and combating various addictions, including treatments for alcoholism.

In the following discussion, the professor shared his personal example of how to quit smoking, and we also discovered how to stop drinking if you have someone by your side who does not reinforce the addiction. Naturally, there was also a look at the most common addictions, including sugar addiction as a very current topic, alcohol addiction, which is a significant issue here, as well as mobile phone and social media addictions, which are growing phenomena of modern times.

What was covered in the lecture?

• Examples of historical advertisements for children’s medicines that now send chills down your spine – 30:15
• What would happen if the Czech Republic introduced alcohol prohibition (including statistics) – 58:58
• What the professor would advise people who fear a loved one might be developing an addiction – 1:26:47
• How addiction manifests in relationships and what the first warning signs to watch for are – 1:38:46

Who is Michal Miovský?

Michal Miovský is a clinical psychologist and addictologist. He works at the Klinika adiktologie 1. Lékařské fakulty UK a VFN, where he serves as head and where he also founded a specialized outpatient clinic for children and adolescents in 2014. As a true academic, he writes books and scholarly articles, having published many of both.