Role of Serotonin in Mental Well-being

Now-a-day there is too much talk about serotonin in relation to improve our mood. 

People like to engage themselves in regular exercise or sunbathing to increase serotonin level. 

And why not ?

After all, research studies are emphasizing the importance of serotonin to boost mental wellness.

Often referred to as the “feel-good’ neurotransmitter, serotonin promotes feelings of happiness and well-being.

Yes, serotonin is one of four “happy hormones” our body produces, along with dopamine, oxytocin, and endorphins.

Many of you might be wondering about what is serotonin? Why there is so much talk about it ? Why serotonin is gaining popularity, especially in relation to boost your mood? Where you can get this serotonin?

So, let’s check out everything about serotonin.

Serotonin as a mediator of brain communication

Serotonin, or 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) is an important chemical that mostly noted for its role as a neurotransmitter. In 1948, serotonin was isolated and characterized by Maurice Rapport and Irvine Page for the first time. It was named serotonin after the Latin word serum and the Greek word tonic. 

Serotonin is synthesized in the brain, digestive system and to some extent, in platelets from an amino acid known as tryptophan. Although serotonin performed its primary function in the brain, a majority of it is circulated to digestive tract and blood platelets. 

It acts as a chemical messenger that relay signals from one area of the brain to another and from the brain to other parts of the body. This makes a serotonin an important molecule influencing various functions of the brain and body.

Therefore, it is assumed that serotonin is involved in a range of psychological and other body functions. These include mood and behavior, memory and learning, sleep, social behavior, appetite and digestion, blood clotting and bone health.

Serotonin and mental illness

Serotonin is a molecule with diverse effects in the central nervous system. It has been linked to a variety of central nervous system function such as mood, behaviour, and sleep cycles.

Surprisingly, it regulates several behavioural processes such as mood, perception, anger, aggression, reward, memory and attention which are essential for human survival. Therefore, serotonin imbalance has been implicated in the development of many mental health illnesses and neurological diseases.

The most crucial role of serotonin is it’s ability to regulate mood, boost the feelings of happiness and enhance emotional well-being.

Also Check : Staying In Tune With Emotional Well-being

Normal serotonin level keeps you emotionally stable, focused and happier. Research studies have shown that the good amount of serotonin in the brain is linked to happy feelings and elevated mood. On the contrary, low levels of serotonin are linked with feeling sad, upset and low in a mood. Therefore, serotonin is often called the body’s natural feel-good hormone or happy chemical.

An imbalance of serotonin levels in the brain is linked with a wider range of mental health illnesses including anxiety, panic attack, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, excessive anger and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Also Check : Mental Disorder : An Invisible Illness

Improving serotonin levels naturally

Apart from medications, there are several natural ways to boost the level of serotonin. 

Spending time in the nature at least 10 to 15 minutes each day can naturally increase a serotonin level in the brain. Scientific studies recorded direct relationship between exposure to the hours of sunlight and serotonin synthesis. 

Therefore, exposure to sunlight is considered as a standard treatment for sessional depression. This serotonin helps to boost your mood and make you feel calm and focused.

The positive effect of physical exercise can’t be underestimated. Exercises such as brisk walking, jogging, swimming and cycling are good to improve your mood. Several lines of research favour the beneficial role of exercise to increase brain serotonin levels. Exercise enhances the availability of tryptophan to the brain and improves serotonin synthesis.

As mentioned above, serotonin is synthesized inside our body. So, we can’t get serotonin directly from food. Food rich in tryptophan, an amino acid that gets converted into serotonin, are found to be beneficial. 

But eating protein-rich diet enhances competition between various amino acids (building blocks of proteins) to cross a blood brain barrier (a protective sheet around the brain that determines what goes in and out of our brain). 

Therefore, it is beneficial to eat tryptophan rich food along with carbohydrates. This facilitates the entry of tryptophan inside our brain. Such tryptophan rich food includes salmon, cheese, eggs, spinach, milk, nuts and pineapple. Combine them with carbohydrate food such as brown rice, whole-wheat bread and oatmeal help to enhance the availability of tryptophan to the brain.

Serotonin syndrome

Although serotonin is good for your mental health, too much of this chemical could be dangerous. A serotonin syndrome is a clinical condition caused by excessive levels of the serotonin in the body. This condition can occur due to serotonin-affecting (serotonergic) medications usually prescribed as antidepressant medications. A person with serotonin syndrome could experience nervousness, difficulty sleeping, nausea and diarrhoea, tremors and dilated pupils. Though the condition is rare but can be fatal if the toxicity is not addressed at early stage. Therefore, it is important to talk to your healthcare provider regularly, especially if you are under antidepressant medication protocol.

Disclaimer

Mediclin Brain Health’s content is for informational and educational purposes only. Our website is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.