TEST TARGETS ADDICTION GENE

As reported in the Daily News back in Feb (06) Tests that target addiction gene, may be of academic interest, but the real-life application of a genetic test for predisposition to addiction would be useless at best, and a likely catastrophe for many. Would parents be more or less emphatic, depending on test results, in warning their kids against underage drinking and narcotics use? Obviously not! On the other hand, the enthusiastic researchers quoted as urging mass testing even of babies seem oblivious to the lifelong stigmatization that would inevitably be associated with positive results, and the impact on applicants for jobs, schooling and all the other opportunities that society has to offer.