12 Ways to boost dopamine levels

Sugar works much the same way as alcohol or drugs, by decreasing the dopamine levels and getting you addicted to the sugar high. Reducing consumption can significantly improve Dopamine levels.

Tyrosine is an important ingredient in the synthesis of Dopamine. You can increase your consumption of Tyrosine, or its precursor Phenylalanine, with ripe bananas, almonds, apples, watermelons, cherris, yogurt, eggs, beans, and meats. If you are severely deficient, talk to your healthcare provider to help you supplement with Tyrosine.

Caffeine offers a temporary energy boost, but actually harms you more as the Dopamine levels drop significantly after each kick.

Sleeping less or more than the adequate can wreak a havoc on your nervous system, and hence on the Dopamine levels too. Obtaining enough sleep allows the brain to recover and also replenish its reserves of Dopamine and other neurotransmitters. Adults should typically sleep approximately 7-8 hours every night.

Regular exercise improves the cardio vascular system and consequently improves the flow of blood and important nutrients to the brain.

If you are stressed in your personal or work life, it is several impacting your brains functioning and will lead to irreparable damage into the future. Cope with stress effectively to improve your Dopamine system.

Magnesium is a mineral that helps relaxation and if you are on a junk food diet, chances are you are magnesium deficient. If you suffer from symptoms of magnesium deficiency, it is very crucial to get magnesium supplements and make changes to your diet to restore Dopamine and other brain chemical levels.

Multi-vitamins, especially those rich in anti-oxidants such as Vitamin C and E can prevent the oxidation of Dopamine and protect the brain neurons involved in the Dopamine pathways.

Porn and masturbation lead to very high levels of Dopamine and post-orgrasm, the body gets a massive crash. It takes a significant amount of time for the brain to recuperate and restore the levels. But, having experienced that Dopamine high, the brain craves more of it and you enter into a vicious cycle. Quit masturbation and porn and recover from neurotransmitter deficiencies. Iinstead focus on social and interpersonal relationships and you will find yourself a more confident and grounded person.

Research by Valerie Salimpoor and her colleagues in Nature has shown that listening to music arouses feelings of euphoria and craving by releasing dopamine. They also show that the anticipatory part, when we are eagerly awaiting the arrival of our favorite part of the music leads to peak benefit. No wonder music is important to the human society and can make the most boring of tasks pleasurable.

Research by Alice Flaherty, MD, PhD has shown that blogging results in dopamine release, similar to that resulting from running or listening to music.

Runner's high occurs when the body releases endorphins, endogenous opioids, during intense physical activity. They result in the increase of dopamine, making strenuous activity more pleasurable, possibly to get us to do that again, or to help us drown out the pain. An alternative hypothesis suggests that such a runner's high occurs on glycogen depletion, when the brain shuts down due to inavailability of its primary fuel. Irrespective of which hypothesis is true, runner's high exists and is associated with dopamine release. So get running to exhaustion.