Optimize & Control Your Brain Chemistry to Improve Health & Performance
January 31, 2023
Author: Lily Lev
Editor: Hannah Ostfield
Andrew Huberman’s recent podcast explores the four major neuromodulators: serotonin, dopamine, acetylcholine, and epinephrine. Neuromodulators are chemicals that act as messengers between neurons, with the power to impact our mood, energy levels, and day-to-day function.
The levels of each neuromodulator fluctuate substantially throughout the day, so using these tools can help you utilize them to their full potential.
Dopamine
Key Uses: Motivation, pursuing goals, focus, drive
To optimize:
Sunlight. Try to view real sunlight within the first hour of waking up. Sunlight increases dopamine receptors and circulates dopamine throughout the body. iPhone screen light doesn’t count!!
Caffeine. It’s best to avoid caffeine after 2-3pm because it will impact your ability to fall asleep.
Tyrosine-rich Foods. These include meat, parmesan cheese, soy products, almonds, avocados, and yogurt.
Cold Exposure. Experiment with 30 seconds of cold water at the end of your shower and work your way up to longer exposure or ice baths.
B-vitamins. These increase prolactin (a hormone), which is directly correlated to increase dopamine.
Serotonin
Key Uses: Creating states of joy, relaxation, happiness
To optimize:
Physical Touch. This can be romantic or platonic!
Gratitude. There is a plethora of research on the positive effects of even brief gratitude practices. These can range from listing three things you’re grateful for in your head each morning to purchasing a more formal gratitude notebook, such as The Five Minute Journal.
Tryptophan-rich Foods. These include whole milk, turkey, oats, chocolate, and seeds.
Epinephrine (AKA adrenaline)
Key Uses: Generating energy, activating the immune system
To optimize:
Exercise. Physical activity of any kind increases epinephrine release. Find a movement that makes you happy and be consistent with it!
Breathwork. In particular, focus on cyclic hyperventilation, a breathing practice shown to increase adrenaline levels and decrease inflammation.
Caffeine. As with using this for increasing dopamine, don’t drink caffeinated beverages after 2-3pm.
Acetylcholine
Key Uses: Increasing focus
To optimize:
Choline-rich Foods. Incorporate eggs, beef, soybeans, chicken, fish, and/or mushrooms into your meals.
Alpha-GPC. This supplement increases the release of acetylcholine to help facilitate learning and memory.
