How to Regulate Dopamine Levels
Dopamine is a chemical produced by your body that transmits signals between the nerve cells in your brain. It affects the way your brain controls the movements of your body. Shortages of dopamine result in Parkinson's disease, where a person cannot perform controlled movements. Dopamine is also central to your pleasure system. It is released when you have pleasant experiences, such as eating good food, falling in love and having sex. Drugs such as cocaine and amphetamines temporarily increase your level of dopamine.
Instructions
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Ask your doctor whether you need to take medication to increase the amount of dopamine in your system. This could be the case if you have Parkinson's disease. A drug called L-DOPA can be given to supplement low dopamine levels in the brain. Patients with Parkinson's disease lose neurons that contain dopamine, and, as a result, their bodies produce more dopamine receptors on other neurons. L-DOPA stimulates dopamine receptors even when dopamine neurons are lacking.
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Ask your doctor whether you need a dopamine antagonist. These are drugs that lower dopamine activity. They are used to treat mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, and to help regulate dopamine levels. The opposite of dopamine agonists, dopamine antagonists bind but don't stimulate dopamine receptors; they reverse the actions of dopamine by keeping it from attaching to receptors.
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Don't take drugs such as cocaine, heroin and amphetamines. These drugs increase the concentration of dopamine in the body. The excess dopamine stimulates neurons, resulting in overstimulation of these pleasure pathway nerves in the brain. Cocaine and heroin use over time can deplete your body of its natural ability to produce dopamine.
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Don't drink caffeine or take caffeine supplements. Caffeine stimulates the production of dopamine in the short-term.
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