Intertwined with hunger and satiety hormones are neurotransmitters, including dopamine. Remember, dopamine stimulates the reward and pleasure centers in the brain, which can impact both mood and food intake. Dopamine is often called the motivator molecule because it is responsible for sending signals to your brain to drive behavior.
While it is true that foods both high in sugar and fat (junk food) spike dopamine levels, there’s a rebound effect. Those same foods can bump up your appetite, lead to overeating, and possibly cause weight gain over the long haul.
So are there foods that can boost dopamine, but without that rebound effect? Yes—protein!
This fact first came to light in a 2014 issue of Nutrition Journal7, in which researchers compared the satiety effects from high-protein breakfasts (containing 35 grams of high-quality animal protein) versus normal-protein breakfasts (13 grams) or breakfast skipping in overweight and obese teenage girls. The high-protein breakfast worked best at curbing postmeal cravings and boosting dopamine levels.
This study was the first to show that dopamine surges after you eat protein. As I noted above, protein contains amino acids, several of which are the building blocks of dopamine. Thus, eating more protein is a healthier way to increase dopamine production.
So, what exactly should you eat if you want to raise your dopamine levels? Among the best choices are foods that are rich in tyrosine, the amino acid building block of dopamine. Think chicken, fish, and lean beef. For animal proteins, choose organic, grass-fed, hormone-free, and antibiotic-free, and, for fish, wild-caught as much as possible.
Plant foods that give a big dopamine boost include nuts and seeds, especially raw almonds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, and chia and hemp seeds.
Amy Shah, M.D.
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