Drug addicts should be treated well in society: Russell Brand

London: Comedian Russell Brand says he became addicted to drugs because of emotional and psychological difficulties.

The 36-year-old film star, who was a former heroin addict, said addiction should be treated as a health issue rather than a criminal matter, reported Daily Mirror. "Addiction should be treated as an illness and society should recognise that addicts, with the proper help, can become active and useful members. "Society should not `discard people, write them off on methadone and leave them on the sidelines`. Instead, society should neutralise the toxic social threat they pose as criminals," he said. Brand, who arrived to give evidence to the Commons home affairs select committee, has confirmed that he had been arrested around a dozen times for drug possession. PTI