Too much of anything good leads to an unhealthy road. The “feel-good” feeling that people get from social media, food, television or anything else pleasurable comes from the neurochemical dopamine. The brain releases this chemical in order for people to feel sensations such as pleasure, motivation and satisfaction. Dopamine is important for the body and for the brain, but only in certain amounts.
According to Healthdirect, a lack of dopamine can cause “less [motivation] and [excitement] about things. It’s linked to some mental illnesses including depression, schizophrenia and psychosis.” On the other hand, an abundance of dopamine “is linked to being more competitive, aggressive and having poor impulse control. It can lead to conditions that include ADHD, binge eating, addiction and gambling.”
When exposed to such high levels of dopamine, the body begins to constantly crave this feel-good feeling. Substances such as drugs and alcohol cause surges of dopamine, contributing to the reason for addiction. It is possible to become addicted to dopamine by seeking out causes of dopamine surges in excessive amounts.
Dr. Anna Lembke, a Stanford Medical School psychiatrist, researcher and author describes dopamine addiction to be “an ingenious method to make sure that no matter what [people] do, that’s pleasurable. [A dopamine surge] doesn’t last very long and it’s followed by pain so that immediately [people are] searching again.”
For much of the younger generation, dopamine addiction has become more common due to easy access to technology. Children as young as toddlers are getting access to cellphones, rather than middle school aged children receiving them for safety reasons. Motivation is at a low due to the distraction in every child’s hand. Rather than studying for school or even spending time outside, kids spend excessive hours on their phone scrolling through social media or texting with friends. Attention spans have gone down as kids look for anything that causes small amounts of pleasure,just to move on to find the next.
Just like any drug, a dopamine addiction will eventually stop producing the “feel-good” feeling and “just makes [people] feel normal,” Lembke says. “When [people are] not using, [they are] experiencing the universal symptoms of withdrawal from any addictive substance, which are anxiety, irritability, insomnia, dysphoria and craving.”
Lowering high levels of dopamine is possible by adjusting to a healthier daily routine. Central causes of raised dopamine levels can include excessive stress, mental illness, lack of sleep, substance abuse or unhealthy food consumption. Only by addressing the issue and changing bad habits will the levels begin to drop. For example, switching to a diet rich in proteins such as vitamin D and magnesium, supplements claimed to increase dopamine levels, as well as exercising regularly will help the brain release healthy amounts of dopamine.
People are always told to eat in healthy amounts, exercise in healthy amounts. Why should receiving dopamine be any different?
