Happiness hormones: what they are and how they help us

Happiness hormones: what they are and how they help us

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Some time ago, talking to a consumer on the phone, to my amazement, I found that she had already read all the articles on the Paladin site and to her “but are you by any chance the curly-haired lady from the blog?” My heart sank, I was moved!!!

Someone is actually reading me!!! This made me very happy and gave me the impetus for this new article.

Today let’s talk about happiness and happiness hormones!

We all deserve to be happy!

In America, the right to happiness is even enshrined in the Declaration of Independence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain

Inalienable Rights

, that among these are Life, Liberty and the

pursuit of Happiness

.”

A kiss, good news, a sunny day, many are the things that can induce happiness in us, but chemically what is it that makes us happy?

The proponents of our happiness and ebullient smiles are 6 hormones:

• Serotonin
• Dopamine
• Oxytocin
• Gaba
• Adrenaline
• Phenylethylamine

Let’s get to know them better.

• SEROTONIN – Good mood hormone

It is a neurotransmitter that regulates mood, sleep-wake cycle, appetite, memory, and (hot moment) sexual desire.

An increase in serotonin brings a sense of happiness, reduces
anxiety
, aggression and relieves headaches.

How to stimulate serotonin production?

By consuming tryptophan-rich foods such as
eggs
, milk and its derivatives, meat, salmon, sesame, sunflower and soybean seeds, spirulina seaweed, potatoes, rice, whole grains, nuts, leafy vegetables, bananas, and then…

THEY,the true holders of culinary happiness, the cocoa and the dark chocolate.

Psss… Psss… Now Auntie tells you a little trick to enable you to easily convey tryptophan to the brain; you just pair foods high in tryptophan with carbohydrates.

Guys, in a nutshell if you are down in the dumps there is nothing better than a nice chocolate sandwich!

• DOPAMINE – Euphoria hormone

It increases when we do something that we enjoy and gives us pleasure such as making love, eating our favorite food, listening to music we like.

How to stimulate dopamine production?

Taking foods rich in phenylalanine (wheat germ, legumes, meat, eggs, fish) and tyrosine (nuts, bananas, avocados, oil seeds, dairy products, cocoa, turmeric).

• Oxytocin – Love Hormone

Produced by the hypothalamus, it is the hormone of happiness related to close affections such as family or partner; it combats stress and brings about a state of calm and serenity, stimulates sexual desire and promotes empathy in relationships; some studies have found that it promotes stable, monogamous relationships.

So if your partner is cheating on you, don’t scratch his car, but check his oxytocin levels!

How to stimulate oxytocin production?

Taking pomegranate, vanilla and chocolate.

• GABA – Serenity Hormone

It reduces anxiety and stress, calms our nervous system when we are agitated.

High levels of gaba give us a sense of peace and serenity.

How to stimulate gaba production?

A good source of gaba are aged cheeses and fermented foods such as kefir and yogurt, and nuts, almonds, hazelnuts, legumes, spinach, tomatoes and parsley should also be mentioned.

• ADRENALIN – Strength Hormone

It helps us face adversity, gives us the strength and readiness we never thought we would have. It makes us overcome our limitations by making us capable of achieving our goals.

It is usually given off when we play sports or when we are scared.

What foods increase the release of adrenaline?

Mainly stimulant foods such as coffee, tea, chocolate, cola; red meat, pork, and sausages also release adrenaline.

• PHENYLETILAMINE – Joy Hormone

It is released when we are particularly elated and excited; it is the hormone that made our hearts flutter as kids when the blond guy at the first counter crossed our eyes; it is the one that makes us feel butterflies in our stomachs when we are in love.

(In my case, the butterflies are there because I’m hungry, but that’s another story).

How to take phenylethylamine?

With protein foods such as chicken, beef, liver, fish, eggs, milk and soybeans.

We get our first “dose,” if you will, of phenylethylamine as infants through breast milk.

Thanks to these short pills on the chemistry of happiness you now know the hormones that act on your emotions.

Happiness, however, always remains a very subjective thing; I have two little crazy things I like to do when I’m down in the dumps or want to shake myself up.

The first is romping around the house listening to loud music, making up real choreography that Lady Gaga lifted–it drains me, clears my mind and gives me joy.

Then, one day a month, I say yes to everything, kind of like in the movie “Yes Man” with Jim Carrey;

on my “Yes Days” I do things I wouldn’t usually do, I break out of my comfort zone, this has made me experience new things all the time that it would never have occurred to me to do that, however, have made me grow and made me very happy.

How about you? What is it that makes you happy?

Ps: greetings to the lady I met on the phone.

If you want to read more of my articles click here.

See you in the next article! ^ ^