What is dopamine?
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter. Your body makes it and your nervous system uses it to send messages between nerve cells. This is why it is sometimes called a chemical messenger.
Dopamine plays an important role in how we experience pleasure. This is an important part of our unique human ability to think and plan. It helps us work hard, focus, and find interesting things.
Your body spreads it along four main pathways in your brain. Like most other systems in the body, you won't notice a problem until it occurs.
Too much or too little can lead to a host of health problems. Some are serious, such as Parkinson's disease. Others are less scary.
Dopamine Basics
It is produced in the brain through a two-step process. First, it converts the amino acid tyrosine into a substance called dopa, and then into dopamine.
It can affect many parts of your behavior and body functions, such as:
- study
- motivation
- heart rate
- vascular function
- kidney function
- Lactation
- sleep
- mood
- attention
- Control nausea and vomiting
- pain management
- move
role in mental health
It's difficult to pinpoint a single cause for most mental health disorders and challenges. But they are usually related to too much or too little dopamine in different parts of the brain. Examples include:
Schizophrenia . Decades ago, researchers thought these symptoms stemmed from an overactive dopamine system. We now know that some are caused by too much of this chemical in certain parts of the brain. This includes hallucinations and delusions. Lack of it in other parts can lead to different signs, such as lack of motivation and desire.
ADHD . No one knows exactly what causes attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Some research suggests this may be due to a lack of dopamine. This problem may be due to your genes. The ADHD drug methylphenidate (Ritalin) works by increasing dopamine.
Substance Abuse and Addiction . Drugs such as cocaine cause large and rapid increases in dopamine in the brain. This largely feeds your natural reward system. But repeated drug use also raises the bar for that pleasure. This means you need to spend more to get the same height. At the same time, medications reduce your body's ability to naturally produce dopamine. This can lead to low mood when you are sober.
Dopamine's role in other diseases
It also plays a role in conditions unrelated to mental health. One of them is Parkinson's disease. Another is obesity, which the American Medical Association classified as a disease in 2013.
Parkinson's Disease. Dopamine enables neurons in the brain to communicate and control movement. In Parkinson's disease, a type of neuron gradually degenerates. It no longer sends signals, so your body produces less dopamine. Chemical imbalances can cause physical symptoms. These include tremors, stiffness, slow voluntary movements, poor balance and poor coordination. Doctors treat these symptoms with drugs that increase levels of this chemical.
obesity . Most of the time, if you take in more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. So why can’t obese people lose weight by simply eating less? The answer is not that simple. They may encounter obstacles that others do not. There may be something wrong with their natural reward system. This affects how much food they eat before feeling satisfied. Imaging studies show that in people with this condition, the body may not release enough dopamine and another feel-good hormone, serotonin.
Dopamine can save lives
This chemical usually plays a minor role in the body, but in some medical situations, it can actually be a lifesaver. Doctors prescribe dopamine to treat:
- hypotension
- Insufficient cardiac output (when the heart cannot pump enough blood)
- Poor blood flow to vital organs
- Some cases of septic shock
Complications can occur with any drug, even if taken under close supervision. The main ones related to dopamine include:
- arrhythmia
- increased heart rate
- Difficulty breathing
- chest pain
- nausea and vomiting
- Headache
It's important that your doctor knows about all the medications you take because many medications can interact with them.
