Dopamine hormone: how to increase dopamine levels
The content of the article:
- Dopamine deficiency
- Excess dopamine
- Dopamine addiction
- How to increase dopamine levels?
Dopamine (dopamine) is one of the neurotransmitters produced by the brain and adrenal medulla and necessary for neurons in the brain to transmit signals to each other.
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is responsible for the state of contentment, joy, falling in love
The structures of the brain that are stimulated to produce a feeling of satisfaction are called the "pleasure center." When activated, they release a chemical associated with pleasure - the hormone dopamine, which is one of the so-called hormones of happiness. In addition to dopamine, serotonin and endorphins are involved in creating the experience of happiness and life satisfaction. Serotonin provides satisfaction after achieving a goal, dopamine is associated with pleasure and motivation in achieving it, endorphins improve mood, increase joy.
The release of dopamine into the blood occurs at the moment when a person is engaged in the type of activity that brings him satisfaction. The brain captures and remembers this sensation, forms stable functional connections between neurons for the implementation of behavioral programs. In the future, he will persistently strive to repeat the process that brings satisfaction and pleasure. Thus, hobbies, habits, inclinations, hobbies are formed.
Dopamine helps the brain choose the right behavioral strategies, is responsible for the formation of desires, motivation, performance, perseverance, purposeful activity and emotional perception. It supports the functioning of the central nervous system, brain and heart, affects the emotional and mental state.
The main functions of dopamine:
- participation in the activation of the brain reward system (formation of motivation);
- regulation of the sleep and wakefulness cycle;
- getting pleasure from food;
- craving for social interaction (communication, craving for new sensations);
- the formation of sexual desire;
- participation in intellectual processes (learning, creativity, memory);
- regulation of muscle work (decreased tone, increased physical activity);
- participation in the coordination of movements;
- participation in the decision-making process;
- the formation of chemical dependence;
- suppression of prolactin secretion.
Neurobiological experiments have shown that dopamine is more associated with motivation and the formation of purposeful behavior. The synthesis of dopamine begins in the process of anticipation of something pleasant, and its amount depends on the specific results of activity or behavior. When receiving a reward and its absence, neurons with different types of dopamine receptors are involved. For that type of activity or behavior that did not bring the expected result, a person loses interest and motivation.
Dopamine deficiency
Dopamine neurons are few in number: only about seven thousand of the eighty-six billion neurons existing in the central nervous system produce dopamine. This is why the dopamine system is often disrupted. Dopamine deficiency in the body causes endogenous depression, leading to metabolic disorders.
A decrease in the production of dopamine in the body is determined by the following criteria:
- lack of motivation, excessive analysis of benefits and costs;
- loss of interest in life, apathy;
- bad mood, boredom;
- irritability and aggressiveness;
- violations of the plasticity of movement;
- anxiety, worry, fear;
- memory impairment;
- violation of spatial orientation;
- poor sleep, restless legs syndrome;
- decreased ability to draw correct conclusions from negative experiences and learn from their mistakes;
- decreased libido;
- hormonal imbalance, weight gain.
With a dopamine deficiency in the body, the likelihood of developing depression is high
Diseases characterized by low dopamine levels include depression, ahedonia (inability to enjoy), attention deficit disorder, chronic fatigue, anxiety and compulsive disorders, Parkinson's disease, social phobias, erectile dysfunction, psychoemotional brain dysfunction, and cardiovascular dysfunction. systems and type II diabetes mellitus.
With age, there is a gradual death of dopamine-producing cells, memory deteriorates, and concentration of attention decreases. With a sharp decrease in the synthesis of dopamine, symptoms of coordination disorder and impaired movement occur, and parkinsonism develops. Parkinson's disease is also manifested by non-motor disorders (low mood, sleep disturbances, anxiety, dementia, weight gain or loss, vision problems).
Drugs that combat tremors and muscle stiffness, which are prescribed for Parkinson's disease, are effective only in the early stages of the disease. Modern treatments for Parkinson's disease are being developed, aimed at stimulating the affected areas of the brain, for example, the method of transplantation of stem cells that produce dopamine.
Excess dopamine
The increase in dopamine production also has its manifestations:
- excessive energy, motor hyperactivity;
- intermittent and inconsistent flow of thoughts;
- impulsive actions, extreme activities with a threat to life;
- sexual fetishism, mania in giving oneself pleasure, including sexual;
- painful suspicion, delirium, hallucinations;
- unmotivated belief in their superiority and importance;
- aggressiveness towards those who interfere with the achievement of goals;
- different types of addictions - drug addiction, food addiction, sexual addiction, computer addiction, gambling, shopping addiction, gadget addiction, etc.;
- psychosis, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder.
Modern biochemical studies link schizophrenia with an excess of dopamine in the nervous system.
Dopamine addiction
Addiction studies show that surges in dopamine and the activation of neural circuits associated with reward and approval cause a weakening of the brain's response to pleasure. Excessive accumulation of dopamine in the brain leads to the fact that the process of dopamine action is disrupted, the brain adapts over time, new receptors are formed, and dopamine stops working. It reduces the feeling of pleasure caused by the chemical or behavior. This creates a dopamine trap that forces addicts to act over and over again to find a source of pleasure. The next surge in dopamine helps to improve the condition for a short time, while simultaneously reducing the sensitivity of dopamine receptors.
The emergence of addiction can be assumed based on the following symptoms: addiction, over-prioritization, loss of control, abuse, neglect of negative consequences. Overstimulation of dopamine receptors gradually decreases sensitivity to dopamine. A low level of receptor sensitivity increases the risk of developing alcoholism, drug addiction or other painful addictions.
Psychostimulants increase the concentration of dopamine in the synaptic space by blocking the physiological mechanisms of dopamine reuptake, and amphetamine directly affects the dopamine transport mechanism, stimulating its release. Alcohol blocks the action of dopamine antagonists.
It has been found that the consumption of foods with a high glycemic index, and in particular sugar, can also lead to a rapid increase in dopamine levels. There are also so-called psychological drugs: behavior that induces a significant rush of dopamine, obsession with thoughts that bring pleasure.
Sweet tooth is one of the dopamine addictions
Drugs increase the production of dopamine in the brain by 5-10 times, while they irreversibly change dopamine neurons. It has been proven that narcotic substances have a stronger stimulating effect on the reward system than any natural factors.
Repeated recourse to the addictive factor causes associations between pleasure and this factor, addicted people need to constantly increase the dose. This is called addiction or tolerance. The emergence of chemical tolerance leads to the development of metabolic disorders, which can seriously damage the functioning of the brain.
How to increase dopamine levels?
An increase in the level of dopamine in its deficiency is facilitated by the enrichment of the diet with foods with tyrosine and antioxidants - L-tyrosine is a precursor of dopamine and can be used as an enhancer of natural dopamine production. Tyrosine-fortified foods include some many types of vegetables, fruits and berries (beets, cabbage, apples, bananas, strawberries, blueberries, avocados), chicken eggs, hard cheeses, cottage cheese, fish, seafood, legumes, almonds, green tea. Foods containing antioxidants (berries and fruits, vegetables, herbs, nuts, spices, teas) reduce the effect of free radicals on the brain cells responsible for dopamine production, protecting them from oxidative damage.
Bananas and Strawberries Increase Dopamine Levels
Increased physical activity - during exercise, a lot of serotonin and dopamine are produced, these substances can induce a state of special lifting known as runner euphoria. Daily morning exercises, sports, long walks will strengthen the body and psycho-emotional state.
In addition, dopamine synthesis is stimulated by:
- sexual activity - during intercourse, a powerful release of dopamine occurs;
- falling in love - at this time, dopamine is intensively produced in the body, it is he who is responsible for the desire of the lover to achieve the goal, to strive for complete possession of the object of love;
- quality sleep - it is important to go to bed on time and make sure that the night's sleep lasts at least 8 hours. Lack of sleep leads to a significant weakening of the sensitivity of the dopamine receptors;
- herbs - the amount of the hormone increases decoctions and infusions of some herbs: ginseng improves memory and vision, helps improve metabolic processes; nettle has a stimulating and tonic effect on the regeneration of affected tissues, has a positive effect on the production of dopamine and endorphin; dandelion enhances the secretion of the hormone in the brain, has a calming effect; ginkgo biloba contains amino acids, phosphorus, calcium, improves nervous activity by increasing dopamine levels, normalizing the transmission of impulses from one neuron to another;
- planning goals - it is useful to set yourself short-term achievable goals. When a person is immersed in the process of achieving a goal, their brain produces dopamine. For the incentive mechanism to work, the goals you set for yourself must be guaranteed to be achievable. At the same time, it is useful to encourage yourself for any, even small, achievements;
- planning not only work, but also leisure - to organize the expectation of something interesting, to find hobbies and hobbies.
To maintain optimal dopamine levels, it is important to give up bad habits and addictions:
- alcohol consumption - alcohol interferes with the normal production of dopamine;
- smoking - the likelihood of depression in people who quit alcohol or quit smoking sharply decreases within a few months after quitting;
- Sugar Misuse - Because sugar triggers the release of dopamine in the pleasure center, it can cause addictions similar to those of alcohol, nicotine, or drugs. For many people, sugar is addictive, the brain becomes tolerant of it, as a result of which they have to consume more and more sweets.
- drinks containing caffeine - abuse of caffeine leads to a decrease in the emotional state, the appearance of premature fatigue;
- psychological addictions.
To normalize dopamine levels, you need to give up bad habits
If natural methods of normalizing dopamine levels are ineffective, medications are prescribed that contain dopamine itself or catalysts that activate its production by the body (for example, Phenylalanine, which contains an aromatic alpha amino acid, whose function is to convert tyrosine and its further processing into dopamine, antidepressants).
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Anna Kozlova Medical journalist About the author
Education: Rostov State Medical University, specialty "General Medicine".
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