Estrogen is considered a female sex hormone produced by the ovaries in women. Without adequate levels of estrogen, women may notice that they feel moody, unhealthy, or are unable to maintain healthy female sex characteristics. Estrogen is an essential hormone for maintenance of feminine sex traits, but also plays an important role in physiological functions such …
Most people are aware that imbalanced levels of neurotransmitters can contribute to mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. Although the neurotransmitter serotonin gets a lot of mainstream attention and most of the hype, in recent years dopamine has been getting more attention. Dopamine is believed to play a role in cognitive function, reward, motivation, …
Making the right dietary changes can have a huge impact on our cognitive function, neurotransmitter levels, and overall health. Since the neurotransmitter serotonin has been associated with a variety of mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety, many people have resorted to eating diets high in foods that contain tryptophan and carbohydrates. The theory behind …
Before considering an antidepressant as an elderly person, it is important to evaluate your life. This means evaluating your condition of depression from a logical perspective. Realize that there are plenty of ways to overcome depression without meds. Obviously if your diet isn’t optimal for your mental health, you don’t feel socially connected (or are …
Everyone’s heard that low serotonin levels are associated with depression. While the serotonin theory of depression may be valid for some people, clearly not everyone with depression has low serotonin. However, we do know that for the majority of people, SSRIs (selective-serotonin reuptake inhibitors) help treat depression. This has lead many people to wrongfully conclude …
Serotonin (5-HT) is a neurotransmitter that most people associate with mood. It is a derivative of tryptophan and is present throughout the body in the CNS, GI tract, and blood. Most people have heard that if you have low serotonin, you’re more likely to be depressed, but not many have heard of high serotonin. While …
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is involved in many necessary brain functions. It is released when we get rewarded and is linked to feelings of pleasure. The pleasure associated with the release of dopamine is what makes certain behaviors addictive. Any behavior that induces a sense of pleasure such as: gambling and winning, doing certain …