Dopamine: How does the "pleasure molecule" work?

Dopamine is one of our neurotransmitters that is used to give us a feeling of satisfaction as a reward for certain actions.

This mechanism is found in romantic and sexual feelings and is the basis of addiction.

What is dopamine?

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, a chemical produced naturally in the human body.

Our brain is made up of a vast network of neurons, the nerve centre of the information and thoughts that inhabit us.

To communicate from one neuron to another, they exchange molecules, the famous neurotransmitters, of which dopamine is one.

It is a neuronal hormone, a "neurohormone", produced by the hypothalamus (the brain's regulatory area), but also by the locus niger (at the level of the spinal cord) and the corpora striata (in the lower part of the brain).

Once produced, dopamine passes information from one neuron to another through the space between them, the synapse.

In fact, the production of dopamine, the pathways it travels in the brain, or the way it binds to receptors on neurons, all form a whole that leads to different decision making.

To understand dopamine is to understand what drives our deep thinking.

What are the differences with serotonin?

Dopamine is often defined as the happiness hormone.

While it is true that reward satisfaction provides pleasure, it is not the same as happiness.

It is a different hormone that makes us feel happy: serotonin.

Serotonin is produced in a more exotic place than our brain: the gut!

Our "second brain", as some call it, therefore produces the real "happiness hormone".

Technically speaking, serotonin is a monoamine, derived from an amino acid, whereas dopamine is derived from tyrosine, which is linked to food.

How it affects the body

The reward system

Its role remains complex to define. However, we do know that dopamine is fundamental to the reward system of our mind.

This is the system that gives us a sense of satisfaction after we have completed a task, a goal.

For example, eating after being hungry.

It also seems to be released during the performance of more complex tasks, associated with the motivation needed to complete them.

Dopamine would therefore be vital for human survival, as it seems to motivate our survival instinct.

Addictions of all kinds

But our brains, wired to live in caves, are now confronted with many other ways of living.

Today, dopamine is mainly found in addictions.

Alcohol or drugs (heroin, cocaine or morphine) release dopamine, which in turn makes you want to use more and more, in an endless vicious circle.

Unless, of course, you motivate yourself to do it, and thus trap the dopamine in your own game!

However, it would be wrong to put all the blame on dopamine: studies have shown that addiction is mostly linked to the individual's social environment.

When this is lacking, we try to make up for the lack of dopamine in other ways.

Love and creation

It is also at the heart of romantic feelings or sexual pleasure (with others or alone...).

Here again, the role of the reward system in the evolution of the human species is crucial: without sexual desire, a species would be doomed to extinction for lack of sufficient reproduction of its members!

New modern variations

Today, dopamine is at the centre of the entire organisation of society.

It is, in fact, what drives us to seek social approval.

The feeling of achieving something with life, beyond the simple search for food and reproduction, is embedded in our hearts.

Some even explain the success of social networks, from Facebook to Instagram, by a new addiction linked to dopamine.

Other effects on the body

Not everything is black and white in the brain, and the role of dopamine goes beyond that of a simple "pleasure molecule".

For example, in Parkinson's disease, the dopamine secretors (dopaminergic neurons in the corpus striatum) no longer function properly.

We then see symptoms of poor limb coordination, with tremors.

In women, dopamine also plays a role in stopping the production of breast milk.

Finally, it seems to be more important in patients suffering from post-traumatic stress, although it is not really clear why.

In practice

In the case of melancholic depression, loss of interest in the activities that caused it, loss of alertness and attention, always consult a doctor.

At the same time, it may be helpful to eat foods rich in tyrosine.

L-tyrosine supplements are also available.