Boosting Serotonin
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Introduction
Ideally, the serotonin originates from an amino acid L-tryptophan- predominantly culturing the brain neurons and a basis of vesicle storage. Inside the bodies of humans, it is highly traced in three different principal body organs: the central nervous system, the blood vessels (mainly the large ones), and inside the intestinal walls. In a number of sampled patients, it was substantiated that whenever there is inadequate serotonin in the brain, there is a consequential high chance of mental disorder. The signs and symptoms of limited serotonin inside the brain can, endlessly, affect the physical or the psychological components of the victim. With this, increasing the levels of serotonin inside the body organs that are associated with it is highly appropriate. While depression is increasingly a common societal problem in urban settings, it is often caused as a result projected environment and other invariable physiological factors.
Antidepressants
The connection between feeling depressed and having low Serotonin levels in the body is one of the things the doctors have been able to learn and understand for some time. With a good number of tests and researches done over the years, the evidence has come to show that this is due to the decrease in the levels of concentration of the serotonin metabolites such as 5-HIAA (5-hydroxy indole acetic acid) inside the cerebrospinal fluid and brain tissues of the people suffering from depression (Andrews et al., 2015). If the patient suffering from depression is feeling like that due to the reduction in serotonin levels in the brain, then the patients can be helped by being given antidepressant drugs.
With low levels of serotonin in the body and particularly the brain, a victim can feel a change in their moods. This usually leads to depression, and this, if not well treated at an early stage, can generally result in some adverse effects on the victims. Hence, the need for boosted levels of serotonin in the body is necessary and is always essential. Over the years, scientists have still been working trying to create the best and most effective drugs to the various medical conditions that patients may have. One of the many developments has been the ant-depressants.
So in the case in which a patient is given antidepressants, the main goal of the drug is to boost the transportation of serotonin to the brain. The serotonin is activated by having the neurons release it into the synapse. In regard, the antidepressants that are issued to the patient’s functions inside the synapse by enhancing the activity of the serotonin. In regular occasions the movement of serotonin inside the synapse is halted by being taken inside the neuron then it is released hence at a time it is either recycled or reused as a transmitter or is broken down into its’ metabolic by-products and is transported out of the brain (Cowen & Browning, 2015). Hence, the antidepressants function to boost the levels of the serotonin levels at the synapse by preventing any reuptake. Patients that have depression can use antidepressants to increase and improve the serotonin levels in the body.
Sunlight
Over the years, scientists and researchers have always studied and tried to analyze, experiment, and understand the relationship between normal seasonal variations in the serotonin levels inside our bodies and the availability or amount of sunlight present. Research done has shown and proved that being exposed to sunlight has reportedly been able to activate the synthesis of serotonin in yeast samples, and this indicates the inter-relationship that is there between the levels of serotonin and the presence of sunlight. Data that has been collected over the years during these studies have shown that serotonin produces natural and seasonal variations inside the central nervous systems of regular human beings (Jenkins et al., 2016).
For instance, there have been reported seasonal variations in levels of serotonin in the plasma levels, hypothalamic concentrations, and also the concentrations of metabolites inside the cerebral spinal fluid as well as the challenges from the neuroendocrine problems with serotonin antagonists. Light has been found out to influence the binding of serotonin inside the serotonin receptor site inside the body. Low levels of view have been associated with lowering the binding levels inside the subcortical and cortical limbic regions found in the brain. Research and studies done by various scientists have shown that the regular average grown-up usually tends to show increased levels of serotonin in the summer, and the levels also tend to become reduced as the seasons grow colder during the spring and winter.
Additionally, inside various body sites such as the brain and the platelets, there has been discovered that there are some levels of serotonin in human cutaneous tissue. This was concluded upon finding out that the machinery of the serotogenic system has a presence in the human skin. What helped to come to such a conclusion is that the tryptophan hydroxylase, which is the initial enzyme that is responsible for the synthesis of the serotonin. With this, it is clear that mammalian skin can produce serotonin. The human skin also expresses intrinsic serotonin biosynthetic pathways. Many other contributing explanations contribute to the relationship between the serotonin levels and light.one is the retinoraphe tract,(the tract that is found between the raphe nuclei and the retina that is responsible for the light-induced modulation of the serotonin), there is a possibility in the role of the skin in the generation of Serotonin .relevant findings have shown that the seasonal changes in the levels of serotonin are as a result of the infrastructural feature of the skin.
The skin by itself is responsible and capable of bio-regulation and production of serotonin. This is why many humans find the need to sunbathe during the summer when there is adequate sunlight around. Sunbathing is an excellent way of boosting up the levels of serotonin in the body. Hence, getting sufficient sunlight is one of the easiest and quickest ways that the human can increase the levels of serotonin, and this can help a lot in reducing depression (Nautiyal & Hen, 2017). Depression cases tend to go high during the winter season and later on fall during the summer. During the summer, people tend to go out and stay outdoor has the level of serotonin in their bodies is high, and this reduces the rate of suicides. Getting plenty of sunlight can help a lot to boost the levels of serotonin in the bodies of humans.
Healthy Lifestyle
Having a safe and healthy life is one of the many goals that many people try as much as possible always to have because of the numerous benefits it brings. A healthy lifestyle comprises different factors ranging from the food we eat and the activities we engage ourselves in. Practicing a healthy lifestyle is a crucial factor in helping people fight depression and the other effects that may arise due to the levels of serotonin in the bodies being low (Cowen & Browning, 2015). Working out has been discovered to be one of the efficient and critical ways to have the levels of serotonin going up. By working out and exercising, one gets to sweat, and by releasing sweat, the levels of serotonin go up. Sweating increases the production and activation of serotonin.
Practicing cardio-focused exercises is one essential exercising practice that is highly productive when it comes to boosting the levels of serotonin in the body. Cardio focused activities such as swimming, running, hiking and dancing, and many others, is one great way of achieving this. Sweating leads to increased production and activation of tryptophan /5-HIAA, which significantly affects the rising level of Serotonin (Andrewse et al., 2015). Tryptophan is a critical component in the production of serotonin, and it is a must needed component for the production. This explains as to why exercising dramatically reduces the chances and levels of one becoming depressed.
It has been observed that people who frequently and consistently engage in physical exercises are less likely to have depression issues. This is clearly a result of the constant release of sweat during their workouts, which helps them keep their serotonin levels consistently high always. With frequent and consistent exercising, which leads to high production of the tryptophan, which in turn facilitates in boosting the levels of serotonin, exercising helps to make it easier for the tryptophan to enter the brain? Once the tryptophan opens up the mind quickly, the action leads to quick activation of the Serotonin (Cassel, 2020).
Another critical factor that should be considered whenever it comes to having a healthy body and lifestyle is to manage our diet correctly. Gaining a lot of weight comes mainly from the food that we consume, and this one of the most important things one needs to focus on to have the desired healthy lifestyle. Different foods have different benefits and components within the food itself that, when consumed, get inside the body.
Some of the most important types of food to ingest to have the levels of serotonin boosted always range from protein, carbohydrates, omega-3, vitamin-D, vitamin-B, vitamin-C and vitamin-E which are highly rich in tryptophan (Jenkins et al. , 2016). By continually making sure that our diets are full of the mentioned food types and taken in perfect ratio, the boosting serotonin levels in the body can be easily and quickly achieved without much difficulty. Some of the vegetables to consider when looking for foods rich in this include, garlic, broccoli, lettuce, and cabbage just to mention a few, provide very high levels of the required component inside the body and by mainly focusing on such vegetables and regularly incorporating them in ones meals can be of tremendous benefit. Foods such as eggs, cheese, pineapples salmon, oysters, just to mention a few are also good a perfect for achieving this benefit. These foods help neurons in the release of serotonin, and this helps in increasing the serotonin receptor sensitivity to improve the performance of the serotonin in the body.
Foods rich in the components mentioned above also helps the amino-acids get to the brain quicker and efficiently, which enables the amino-acid to be converted into serotonin without much difficulty. Another way to best achieve this is to try as much as possible to avoid foods that are highly rich in insulin. Insulin tends to bind with the protein albumin, which can hinder this. By avoidance of such, the tryptophan is increased, and there becomes more transport between the brain and the blood. Avoiding foods that are highly rich in fat content is one of the things that many people tend to try to observe. Fatty foods are the main contributors to one becoming overweight and are hard to maintain a fat-free diet since most of the foods that we eat have fat content in them (Nautiyal & Hen, 2017). It is highly advisable to make sure that the consumption of fatty foods is significantly reduced to achieve a healthy lifestyle. Hence, watching and maintaining a healthy diet, which at times can be very difficult, should be everyone’s objective in the quest to living and having healthy habits. Having a healthy lifestyle reduces a lot of the risk that comes about from being overweight. Such include having high blood pressure, diabetes, and having breathing problems are some of the many issues that can be easily avoided.
Mindfulness and Positivity
Being mindful of the surrounding that we live in is very crucial because of the effect laid on our reactions to other things. Undoubtedly, anxiety and stress are found to be some of the things that lead someone to become depressed. Having lots of thoughts in our brains regularly may eventually lead someone to start thinking of ways to escape these thoughts, and when it comes to this, one might commit suicide, which should not be the case (Andrews et al., 2015). Reducing most of the negative thoughts from the mind is one of the ways of achieving this. Focusing on the positive feelings which bring joy is beneficial. Decreasing the time that one spends in remembering the unfortunate and sad occurrences from the past is also a much better way. It is good to forget about any bad things that occurred as soon as possible.
Positivity can be a great way to become a stress-free person. Always have positive and happy thoughts is excellent as one gets to think only of the good things that happen hence having no time of thinking of negative things that can occupy their brain. Often, being in a happy mood helps elevates serotonin production in the anterior cingulated cortex. In trying to keep the serotonin levels in the body high to have a consistently productive life, the use of antidepressants is by far one of the common ways to achieve (Cassel, 2020).
Antidepressants help to keep the patient happy, thus sustaining the high levels of serotonin. Another more natural approach is acquiring as much sunlight as possible. As indicated, sunlight helps a lot to increase the serotonin levels in the body, and that is mostly during the summer (Nautiyal & Hen, 2017). Many people find it pleasant to engage in sunbathing as the skin is capable of activating the production serotonin. Practicing and always maintaining a healthy lifestyle is an essential thing to focus on. This should not only be done whenever one has depression issues, but it should be directed in our day to day life activities as it brings much more benefit—ensuring that what we eat is per the diet that we are supposed to be on is also essential—avoiding any foods that add more damage to the body substantial.
Conclusion
In summary, most of the foods that we consume should always be rich in the main food components such as carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and minerals. These help the body to be much healthier. Being mindful of whatever is in our minds and always trying to focus on the positive things is also good for the body. Happiness brings more to the collection, and by being always happy, the production of serotonin goes up, thus reducing the chances of becoming depressed. Depression has over the years, become very common among people, and this is usually factored by the environment of the person or some physiological factors. From the above, it is clear that there are various ways that this problem can be dealt with to try and reduce the number of victims, which, if not taken seriously early enough can have some adverse effects on the victims. Practicing all appropriate measures can and will, for sure, help address the challenge caused by the ever-increasing depression.
References
Andrews, P. W., Bharwani, A., Lee, K. R., Fox, M., & Thomson, J. A. (2015). Is serotonin an upper or a downer? The evolution of the serotonergic system and its role in depression and the antidepressant response. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 51,164-188. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.01.018
Cassel, J. C. (2020). The role of serotonin in learning and memory: a rich pallet of experimental studies. In Handbook of Behavioral Neuroscience (Vol. 31, pp. 549-570). Elsevier.
Cowen, P. J., & Browning, M. (2015). What has serotonin to do with depression? World Psychiatry, 14(2), 158-160.doi:10.1002/wps.20229
Jenkins, T., Nguyen, J., Polglaze, K., & Bertrand, P. (2016). Influence of Tryptophan and Serotonin on Mood and Cognition with a Possible Role of the Gut-Brain Axis. Nutrients, 8(1), 56. doi:10.3390/nu8010056
Nautiyal, K. M., & Hen, R. (2017). Serotonin receptors in depression: from A to B. F1000Research, 6, 123.doi:10.12688/f1000research.9736.1