Dopamine has two roles in the body, first as a neurotransmitter and second as hormone.
As a neurotransmitter, dopamine transmit nerve signals to brains regarding happiness, motivation, reward etc. It is the dopamine which first act when you are getting happiness or thoughts regarding this.
As a hormone, it regulate reproductive functions, lactation process and maintain the blood vessels and blood flow.
Where does dopamine secrets in the body?
Dopamine is secrete in the brain specifically in substantia nigra, ventral tegmental area and hypothalamus. There are small amounts of dopamine forms in the adrenal glands and kidneys which helps in maintaining the blood flow and sodium excretion.
So, dopamine is made from the amino acids, called tyrosine. tyrosine converts into the dopamine where there is such activity occur that makes you feel good, happy or achieved.
This tyrosine is essential amino acid, that is present in the food like milk, eggs, fish, meat, soyabeans and almonds, cashews, pistachios and penauts.
So, consuming this will help in producing more oxytocine level or body will easily create dopamine whenever needed.
But dopamine does not just secrete by the protein rich foods, it will help when your body lacks proteins.
Other factors that promote dopamine secretions are sleep quality of 7 to 8 hour, moderate physical activity and balanced diets helps to boost dopamine.
What does dopamine do in our body?
First we will see dopamine as neurotransmitter functions and then as a hormone because it works differently based on where it secrete and why it secretes.
As a neurotransmitter dopamine does following things,
- It helps to control the body moments
- Each time when a person feels something rewarding or achieving even eating a good food, dopamine releases and you experience rewards. If dopamine levels goes down, one may feel difficult to feel rewarding or motivated.
- Dopamine also helps in keeping you busy in work, as serve as motivation. You improve your work quality and timings for that dose of dopamine release. It feels you success and achievable.
- It helps in attention, concentration, learning and memory related tasks.
As a Hormone, it does following functions,
- Dopamine hormone is produced by hypothalamus. It prohibits prolactin hormones, responsible for breast milk secretion.
- It act on the blood vessels, as widen vessels so more blood is reached to the organs.
- It also helps in maintaining fluid balance of the body.
How to increase dopamine level?
Dopamine is not a feel good hormone but of the motivation and reward related hormone or neurotransmitter.
So, when you watch something motivated or does something that feels you like you complete task or achieved something, your dopamine increases.
So, if you keep doing things you love and like then your dopamine level will keep in normal ranges.
There are some methods that you can use to increase it are,
- Daily excersise – it stimulate dopamine releases in the brain
- Have protein rich source in your diet ex. eggs.
- Set short acheivable goals that makes you feel rewards
- Listen to music you love will stimulate dopamine secretions
- Meditation also helps to form dopamine as it decreases stress level and increased focus and attention
As, there are people who get addicted to dopamine release. As they keep watching the motivation videos, inspiring reels, because that gives them dopamine shot. But they became addict to it.
So, goal is not to boost dopamine, but to do the activities that succeed you in the life with dopamine release.
What do you people think, let me know in the comments section….