Serotonin is one of the chemical messengers in our body that regulate our nervous system. The neurotransmitter is famously known as one of the “happy hormones.” In particular, serotonin influences our overall feelings of well-being.
As a molecule, serotonin carries signals between different parts of the brain, which affects many functions including emotions, digestion, and appetite. When serotonin is properly balanced in the body, you’ll feel happier and emotionally stable. When there are low levels of serotonin, it could lead to mood instability, irritability, anxiety, depression, sleep, digestive issues, and difficulty sleeping.
Learning about serotonin and its triggers helps you make informed choices to modulate your mood for the better. If you’re looking to promote serotonin naturally, read on for some psychologist-recommended, science-backed tips:
1. Get plenty of sunlight and vitamin D.
Surrounding yourself with nature can have a strong impact on your state of mind and inspire a feeling of peace and meditative calmness. A lack of vitamin D has been correlated with depression, so going outdoors and getting regular exposure to the sun can help reduce depressive symptoms and increase serotonin. To counteract the wintertime blues in the colder months, you can try light therapy or vitamin D supplements to make up for any serotonin loss.
“It is believed that sunlight and subsequently vitamin D can influence our experience of positive emotions, protect from depressed mood and anxiety, as well as promote our energy and alertness,” says psychologist Sheva Assar, Ph.D.
2. Give and receive affective touch.
Have you ever had a bad day and just really needed a hug? There’s a reason for that. Assar explains physical touch, such as hugging,cuddling, or a supportive touch, can help build connections with others and influence the production of serotonin—which boosts mood and immunity response while decreasing stress.
“We are social beings and benefit from various forms of connection,” she says. “For instance, using a supportive touch on self can serve as an act of self-compassion and can support one’s sense of self-connection, connection with the present moment and experience of calmness, and reduction of the stress response, i.e., potential decrease in cortisol.”
3. Keep a gratitude journal.
“Reflecting on things, people, opportunities, and the inherent strengths we are fortunate to have in our lives can have a significant impact on our overall well-being and mental health, as well as likely increased production of serotonin,” Assar says. “The more regularly we practice gratitude, the easier it is for our mind to identify and enjoy positive aspects within our lives, which can influence a greater release and experience of serotonin.”
To integrate gratitude into your life, Assar suggests identifying two to three things each day that you are grateful to have (and even writing them down in a journal). Making it a part of your routine expands your worldview and cognitively encourages you to find the silver lining of whatever’s happening in your life.
4. Manage caffeine intake.
While coffee may be an integral part of your morning or workday, Assar warns against an overreliance on it since caffeine withdrawal can drain your serotonin levels. Pay attention to your intake if you notice your mood has been dipping.
“Although many experience a temporary boost in energy and mood, chronic and excessive coffee consumption eventually contributes to serotonin depletion and can negatively impact your mental health and well-being in the long run,” says Assar, including sleep, mood, and energy levels.
Serotonin aids with alertness, and it’s also thought to function as a precursor to melatonin, a hormone released through your pineal gland that controls the sleep-wake cycle. If you’re noticing sleep disturbances in your circadian rhythm, that might be nodding to low levels of serotonin.
“It is believed that our serotonin levels influence our sleep patterns, ability to maintain sleep, as well as the quality of our sleep; however, how serotonin exactly does this seems to be unclear,” Assar notes. “Serotonin contributes to the production of melatonin, which is the sleep hormone that helps us in falling asleep and experiencing sleepiness. Serotonin itself contributes to the ability to wake up in the morning and experience a sense of alertness.”
6. Have plenty of nutrient-rich foods and drinks.
“Causes of low levels of serotonin could be a combination of things. Two common reasons: Your body isn’t producing enough of it, which could be related to vitamin and nutrient deficiencies; your body is able to produce it but not use it effectively,” psychologist Rachel Goldman, Ph.D., tells mbg. “There’s a relationship between mood and food. The food we eat impacts how we feel. Many foods naturally contain serotonin, but there are other nutrients that our body also needs to produce [it], including tryptophan and omega-3 fatty acids.”
Some useful foods include eggs, salmon, oats, cheese, turkey, nuts and seeds, plantains, pineapple, tomatoes, and kiwis.
It’s been suggested that ashwagandha, an Ayurvedic herb, can aid in stress reduction and boost serotonin by enhancing nervous system functioning.
As for foods to avoid: While drinking alcohol is a temporary serotonin booster, long-term consumption can deplete your levels. Also, avoid foods with artificial sweeteners since they inhibit dopamine and serotonin production.
Goldman says that regular exercise has mood-boosting effects and is known to help manage depression, anxiety, and other mood disorders. Incorporating aerobic activity into your daily routine increases the abundance of tryptophan, which increases serotonin levels in the human brain. Being physically active also produces a slew of other feel-good chemicals such as dopamine and endorphins.
“Physical exercise enhances mood and brain functioning. Exercise can also be effective in limiting the negative toll of stress, which can eventually allow for a greater boost of positive internal experiences,” Assar says.
Getting a massage contributes to an increase of dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin. The rush of those chemicals in your body can make you feel all relaxed afterward—post-massage bliss is a real thing.
“Massage is another great stress management tool and has been found to not only promote the release of serotonin but also decrease cortisol,” Goldman says. Cortisol, also known as your stress hormone, is often seen as your body’s built-in alarm system. Decreasing cortisol through tension work and skin-to-skin contact can help promote feelings of tranquillity.
With roots in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), acupuncture works by inserting thin, metallic needles into different pressure points and zones on the body. The needles are thought to activate blood flow to the area, which floods that section with endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers. Theoretically, undergoing acupuncture works by bringing your body’s yin and yang back into proper energy alignment.
“Similarly to massage, this is another great stress management tool and has also been found to release serotonin,” Goldman says. Emerging research, like this study published in Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, notes acupuncture can help control your autonomic nerve function and potentially stimulate your parasympathetic nervous system for more relaxation.
10. Make meditation a regular practice.
Meditation is a mindfulness practice and works by developing presence and awareness into your state of consciousness. “It’s known to help relieve stress as well as promote a different outlook on life, which can help increase levels of serotonin,” Goldman says.
In fact, a study from Harvard that looked at meditators’ MRI images, found that increased neuron activity in the brain could beneficially affect the synthesis of neurotransmitters like serotonin. (Here are different types of meditation to get you started.)
“We literally need gut-derived serotonin for our mental well-being, and the diversity of the bacteria in our gut, called the gut microbiota, is believed to influence serotonin levels,” says Wolkin. “This is why, for increased well-being, we not only have to heed our mind but heed our guts.”
12. Practice positive thinking.
“When we practice thinking more positively, we, in turn, feel more joy. The brain is cued to create more serotonin in response to positive emotions,” Wolkin says.
“Taking this to the next level, we can extrapolate that more positive thinking can play a role in neuroplasticity. When positive thoughts are generated, production of our stress hormone, cortisol, decreases, and serotonin is produced, creating a feeling of more overall well-being.”
She points out, however, that it’s not healthy to think positively all the time—which is OK.
Music can make you feel a range of excitatory emotions, from jubilant to weepy. It can also help you access serotonin. According to Wolkin, listening to music you like activates the pleasure center of the brain, which not only releases dopamine and serotonin but keeps serotonin around longer.
“There’s animal model research indicating that listening to melodic music specifically can increase the release and concentration of the brain neurotransmitters known as the monoamines, which includes dopamine and serotonin,” Wolkin says. “What’s fascinating is that both seeking out new music and seeking out familiar music can both be beneficial. Either way, every sensory and perceptual experience we have is bound to change our brain chemically in some way.”
There are multiple factors that can either exponentially increase or deplete serotonin in our body. Integrating these simple methods into your everyday life can help you achieve balance with your mood and overall well-being.
