On three recent occasions, TV talk show participants have mentioned dopamine, during a casual conversation about another person. It was used in the context of the individual’s motivation to perform some act or the satisfaction he/she enjoyed as a result of that act. I was taken aback by the comments because it wasn’t used in a scientific context, which is where it’s most commonly mentioned, and most people don’t mention it during normal conversation.
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter. Neurotransmitters are the chemicals in the nervous system which transmit messages between parts of the system. They are the “chemical messengers” that enable the nervous system to function. There are over 100 different neurotransmitters and without them, any number of debilitating neurologic diseases can occur. Among those are Parkinson’s Disease (due to the absence of dopamine) and Myasthenia Gravis (due to the absence of acetylcholine). Other common neurotransmitters are histamine, epinephrine, norepinephrine, acetylcholine, GABA, glutamate, oxytocin, endorphins, and serotonin.
Dopamine is produced in a deep part of the brain called the Basal Ganglia. Whenever a person experiences something in their life that is pleasurable, enjoyable, or beneficial, dopamine has been involved in their emotional reaction to it. It is associated with feelings of pleasure, reward, and behaviors that are motivational and goal-directed.
Dopamine influences learning and memory. This is a nebulous and hard to understand concept so how this happens is beyond the technical scope of this article. I don’t think I would understand it anyway, (Biochemistry was my least favorite subject in med school) but suffice it to say, dopamine released from the basal ganglia carries messages from nerve cells in the brain to other nerve cells over the rest of the body. Attention and focus contribute to learning and memory and are also mediated by dopamine.
It is dopamine that gives us the feeling of pleasure and happiness when we experience a pleasant activity, and it is the cause of the emotional response we feel or express as a result of it. Fluctuations in the level of dopamine are what control mood swings and emotional ups and downs. It is nicknamed the “feel good chemical,” because of its pleasure-making properties. It is released to the nervous system while shopping, baking cookies, and during sex. Highest levels of dopamine are measured at night and in the early morning hours. Caffeine increases dopamine levels, but methamphetamine increases it more significantly thus it contributes to addictions. The release of dopamine is also triggered by cocaine, alcohol, heroin, meth, marijuana, and nicotine so using these drugs leads to people becoming physically dependent on them.
Dopamine plays a role in refining our physical movements. It’s involved both in falling asleep and waking up. High dopamine levels make us feel happy, motivated, alert, and focused. Low levels cause mood swings, tiredness, a lack of motivation, and an unhappy mood. Low levels can be improved naturally by eating more chicken, almonds, apples, bananas, oranges, peas, and tomatoes.
Dr. G’s Opinion: Dopamine is a monoamine that functions as a “modulator” of the human nervous system and is known as the “feel good chemical.” It gives us the sense of accomplishment and the feeling of pleasure. It keeps our mood happy and our ambition motivated. Without it we have serious problems like Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, ADHD, BI-polar disorder, addiction tendencies, and restless legs syndrome. It plays a major role in the happiness in our lives. Mentioning it in normal conversation sounds elitist to me.
References: Schultz W. Recent advances in understanding the role of physicians dopamine activity. F1000Research 2019, 8(F1000 Faculty Review):1680.
Berridge KC. The debate over dopamine’s role in the reward: the case for incentive salience. Psychopharmacology 2007 Apr;191(3):391-431.
Kasdin J, Duffy A, Nadler N, Radha A, Fairhall AL, Stachenfeld KL, Gadagkar V Natural Behaviour is learned through dopamine-mediated reinforcement. Nature 2025 May;641(8063):699-706.
