5 Happy Hormones and How Boost Them Naturally

After experiencing depression while training to become a physician, I developed an interest in happiness and have studied, and taught, ways to create positivity and joy.

A study published in Psychological Science in 2008 found that certain inherited genes seem to account for 50 percent of our happiness. But even if your natural tendency is to be more down than up, you can make choices that will help you experience a brighter, happier life.

(Related: 6 Priorities to Make for a Happy and Healthy Life)

Hormones and neurotransmitters moderate our feelings of well-being, and lifestyle factors affect them.

Here are five of the main happy hormones and neurotransmitters, plus ways to boost them. However, if you feel consistently unhappy, see your doctor.

1. Dopamine

This happy hormone is a neurotransmitter that drives your brain’s reward system. If you are praised at work for doing a good job, you’ll get a delicious dopamine hit, resulting in feelings of well-being. It also drives pleasure-seeking behaviour. Boost it by setting realistic goals (e.g., tidying your desk or sticking to your workout schedule) and achieving them. And seek out pleasurable healthy activities that have a positive impact on your life.

(Related: 3 Ways to Change How You Think to Achieve Your Health Goals)

2. Serotonin

This mood-boosting neurotransmitter was made famous by SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants, which increase the brain’s serotonin levels. The most effective and natural way to boost serotonin is by exercising daily; that’s one reason a brisk walk does wonders for your mood. Just take 10 minutes out of your day and complete one of our resistance band workouts.

3. Oxytocin

Both a neurotransmitter and a happy hormone, oxytocin is often called “the love hormone.” Researchers from Claremont University in California have done extensive research on its impact on women, linking oxytocin release to life satisfaction levels. It may play a greater role in women’s physiology and happiness compared to men’s. Spending time with loved ones and being kind to others stimulates oxytocin. Don’t you feel good just reading that?

(Related: The Secret to Happiness? Concentrate on Your Relationships)

4. Estrogen

This happy hormone helps form serotonin and protects you from irrita­bility and anxiety, keeping your mood steady. Estrogen decreases with menopause, and lifestyle factors such as smoking and extreme exercise can also lower it. The estrogen/progesterone imbalance in perimenopause can also negatively affect mood. Stress management can balance them, since stress hormones, such as cortisol, interfere with the secretion, action and function of the two happy hormones.

5. Progesterone

This helps you to sleep well and prevents anxiety, irritability and mood swings. Levels of this happy hormone drop as women enter perimenopause after age 35 or 40, and this can be accelerated by excess stress and unhealthy foods. Experts such as Dr. Sara Gottfried, author of The Hormone Cure, say taking care of yourself and eating right is your first defence for balancing hormones before trying hormone replacement therapy, including bioidentical progesterone and estrogen. Talk to your doctor to learn more.

Natural ways to boost your happy hormones

Music

Listening to music is a fabulous way to get a hit of dopamine: In a 2011 study published in Nature Neuroscience, McGill University researchers reported that listening to music you love (especially if it gives you “chills”) creates a boost in feel-good dopamine.

(Related: How Singing Can Raise Your Spirits During the Holiday Season)

Eat carbs

Carbohydrates increase serotonin levels, which partly explains why we crave sweet, starchy foods when we are feeling down. For the best mood boost with the least negative impact, choose healthy, high-fibre sources of carbs such as dense whole-grain bread or quinoa.

Spend time with loved ones

Get a boost of oxytocin by doing pleasurable things such as spending time cuddling with your partner, your kids or your pet(s), rather than spending time on social media. (Here are more health benefits of cuddling.)

Stress relievers

Increase estrogen with stress-relieving activities such as yoga, meditation, taking a hot bath — or whatever works for you. Plus, keep progesterone at optimum levels by eating well and avoiding saturated fat and sugar, getting regular physicals and avoiding stress.

Next: 13 Things Psychologists Wish You Knew About Happiness