Is there anything better than feeling upbeat and optimistic?
Starting and ending each day in a state of happiness benefits our health and well-being, protects against depression, and helps us resist stress.
When I see a patient struggle to experience happiness, it’s time for a chat about serotonin. Serotonin is a natural hormone that helps stabilize mood and feelings of well-being. It enables several vital systems in the body, from sleep to digestion to wound healing.
Serotonin is one of four “feel-good” hormones that also include dopamine (the sense of “reward” that comes with accomplishment), endorphins (pain and stress relief), and oxytocin (trust, empathy, and bonding).
Here, we’ll focus specifically on serotonin: What’s it all about? And do supplements to increase serotonin really work?
How Serotonin Works
We’ve known for years that the more serotonin in your brain, the happier you feel. It’s a neurotransmitter that sends chemical messages between the nerve cells in your brain and body that tell the body how to function.
However, many people become deficient in serotonin when their body can’t make enough of it or doesn’t use it efficiently. An imbalance of serotonin in the body, too much or too little, can lead to psychological and physical health issues — depression, anxiety, or other mood problems and stress disorders.
Alternatives to Supplements to Increase Serotonin
So, if you’re low on it, is it really necessary to use supplements to increase serotonin?
First, here are some notable alternatives that are quite effective:
Go natural.
Boosting serotonin in any of the following ways is often as effective as taking a pharmaceutical:
- Get some cardiovascular exercise: A great option if you’re able to commit adequate time and effort.
- Have a mood-elevating conversation with friends: A positive byproduct of cultivating relationships and a dependable support system.
- Lead a healthy lifestyle: A benefit when you focus on good sleep hygiene, a nutritious diet, mindfulness, and an attitude of gratitude.
Choose a proven medication.
If natural approaches don’t help, or if the good feelings don’t last, today’s selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can effectively prevent your natural levels of serotonin from degrading and boost them within your brain.
Your Priority Physicians can work with you to find the right SSRI to successfully regulate your body’s serotonin.
Supplements to Increase Serotonin
With so many natural and pharmaceutical solutions available, why do some people consider supplements to increase serotonin?
Medical science originally believed that the blood-brain barrier (BBB) — a membrane that regulates the movement of molecules between the blood and the brain — was impermeable. But we now know that up to 30% of the serotonin available in oral supplements can cross the BBB and enter the brain.
So, are supplements to increase serotonin a valuable aid? Should we all use them?
Before adding a serotonin supplement to your routine, consider if all the claims made by the supplement marketer are reliable. Frequently, they’re not. The supplement industry is completely unregulated by the Food and Drug Administration, so a manufacturer’s claims about product ingredients can be false or misleading.
A supplement manufacturer can simply claim on a label that a product contains a particular ingredient or additive, with zero proof.
Even if specific components do exist in the product, the manufacturer can claim they have unconfirmed — even untested — benefits.
Purity can be an issue, too: a supplement may contain contaminants or other questionable contents you don’t want to ingest. A manufacturer can package dirt and sell it as a happiness-boosting superfood.
Weighing the Best Approach
Many of us would benefit from having a little more serotonin in our central nervous system. If you’re feeling the negative effects of depleted serotonin, your Priority Physicians can help you find a proven approach to treating it.
Before I recommend a particular medication to boost serotonin, I consider your lifestyle, medical history, and other medications you take, weighing each element to find the right balance.
Are pharmaceuticals infallible? Nothing is perfect, but a well-respected, tried-and-tested medication is far less likely to have negative side effects than an unregulated supplement.
If you don’t have a serious need for more serotonin but just want to feel happier and more upbeat, our Priority Physicians help you figure out how to do that, as well. For example, taking a run or brisk walk, especially if you do it with a friend, will boost your mood.
Just as eating real fruits and vegetables is superior to taking a veggie supplement, a natural approach is often the best one.
The Takeaway
So, why consider supplements to increase serotonin if supplements are such a wild card?
Yes, they’re widely available, and they do appear to cross that blood-brain barrier. But because they have so many unknowns, I don’t recommend my patients take them.
Your Priority Physicians want you to feel happy and optimistic regularly — and we know how to help. Check in with us. We’ll find the best approach for you.
