Find out which medicine likes to steal

US scientists claim a drug commonly used to treat alcohol and drug addiction has the ability to control people's desire to steal.

'That's naltrexone. It can eliminate the desire to steal , "said Dr. Jon Grant of the University of Minnesota (USA).

Grant and colleagues tested the effects of naltrexone on 25 people who have a habit of stealing at least once a week. Among these, many people make a lot of money but still like to steal trifling items when they go to shops and supermarkets. They were dissatisfied with themselves but could not give up pleasures of stealing. Some volunteers use naltrexone, the rest use placebo.

After 8 weeks the naltrexone users admitted they felt a desire to steal significantly, while the placebo group did not feel any changes. Over the next few months their thieves decreased significantly compared to the time before the trial and compared with the placebo group.

According to the team, naltrexone has the ability to block nerve interactions in the brain. These interactions create a sense of satisfaction and excitement. When there is no feeling of satisfaction, we rarely get interested in stealing unless we are in a predicament.

Naltrexone is marketed with the brand name Revia and Depade. It has the ability to cure alcoholism and drug addiction.

Naltrexone tablets.Photo: peacehealth.org.

The concept of "stealing impulses" (kleptomanie) is known since the nineteenth century, but people still do not know much about it and have been classified by the American Psychiatric Association as a list of control disorders.

Psychologists estimate that 5% of the thieves are people with "stealing", a disorder that often affects the patient's family, social and professional life. to the law. People with this disease commit acts of theft to entertain, but do not really need objects.