Have you ever heard of happiness hormones? They are substances responsible for promoting sensations of pleasure and well-being, naturally produced by our body during some day-to-day actions, such as practicing physical activities and performing mental exercises – that is, which are related to our habits and lifestyle. They make all the difference in the body and are super important to have a better and longer life. But what are the hormones of well-being and happiness? What does each of them do? Psychiatrist Juliana Diniz reveals the list: dopamine, endorphin, oxytocin and serotonin.
What are the happiness hormones?
- Endorphin: feel-good hormone
Endorphins have this name because they are substances that promote the same effect as morphine derivatives – a substance used as an analgesic. One of the most famous benefits of endorphins is increasing tolerance for physical stress. “By performing moderate or high-intensity physical activity, we produce endorphins that are related to our ability to continue exercising despite tiredness. As many people describe that they feel better after intense exercise, this feeling of well-being was attributed to endorphins”, explained the doctor. In addition to this, there are other advantages of this substance in the human body:
- Increased pleasure;
- pain reduction;
- improvement in quality of life.
this hormone of well-being produced during physical activity, such as physical exercises high impact: running, swimming, martial arts, crossfit, bodybuilding and others. The lack of this substance directly affects mood, increasing the level of stress and may lead to anxiety and depression.
- Dopamine: pleasure hormone
Dopamine, popularly known as the pleasure hormone, acts as a neurotransmitter, that is, as a molecule that participates in the communication between neurons. According to results based on animal models, it seems to signal that we are facing some stimulus that, in the past, has already been associated with the production of a rewarding experience. This signaling made by dopamine seems to be essential for the animal to mobilize to get the reward.
Based on this study, Dr. Juliana states that dopamine does not seem to participate in the production of the sensation of pleasure, but its role can be understood as a way of stimulating the animal to act in search of pleasure. For this reason, it is common to find it on the list of well-being and happiness hormones.
In humans, however, the relationship between dopamine and behavior takes on much more complex characteristics than in animal models. “We know that dopamine participates in some way in our quest for reinforcement, but we also know that dopamine modulation is not simple and is not related to easily predictable outcomes. Attributing the sensation of pleasure to dopamine can give the false impression that it is essential or sufficient to explain pleasurable experiences, something that is far from what we know”, revealed the doctor.
Check out other benefits of dopamine:
- causes a feeling of satisfaction;
- increases motivation.
If you want to stimulate this pleasure hormone in the brain, bet on meditation techniques, start sleeping well and avoid the consumption of saturated fats. The lack of dopamine in the body can cause tiredness, fatigue, memory loss and concentration difficulties.
- Serotonin: hormone of happiness
Serotonin, like dopamine, has several functions in the human body and, for some of them, the substance acts as a neurotransmitter. Several serotonin receptors (molecules to which serotonin binds) are targets of many drugs with an antidepressant effect. Regarding this, Dr. Juliana says her opinion: “The effect of antidepressants it is not producing the feeling of happiness. What these remedies can do is reduce feelings of anxiety and anguish and improve our disposition to engage in some activity. Whether this will make us happy or not, we can no longer predict.”
The doctor also explains that attributing the feeling of happiness to serotonin can give the false impression that the depression would be caused by the lack of serotonin and that the increase in this substance would be enough to resolve the depression. “None of these relationships is true, although it is true that drugs that alter serotonergic transmission in some way can sometimes have antidepressant effects,” said the professional.
The happiness hormone promotes several benefits, such as:
- Improve mood;
- control sleep;
- increase libido;
- decrease to anxiety;
- increase appetite.
Serotonin can be produced during sexual intercourse, in fun times with friends and through eating foods that have fiber and vegetables. Without this substance, the chances of becoming more stressed and developing emotional problems are greater.
- Oxytocin: love hormone
Oxytocin is the famous hormone of love. The doctor explains how this substance works: “Some studies have pointed to the relationship between oxytocin and the feeling of being in love and sexual activity. These findings have given oxytocin the reputation of the hormone of passion. However, the administration of oxytocin in humans has generated inconsistent results and today it is no longer so clear that it has a central role in establishing social relationships in our species”, pointed out the expert.
However, it is possible to see in practice the positive effects of oxytocin in motherhood, especially during childbirth and in the breast-feeding:
- promote uterine muscle contractions during childbirth;
- help with milk ejection during breastfeeding.
Oxytocin is produced in three moments of life: during childbirth, breastfeeding and orgasm. Without this so-called love hormone, the person becomes more stressed, with low libido and may develop sleep disorders.
The post Care for Life.
Source: cuidadospelavida.com.br
