Brain Chemicals have a large effect on how we think and feel. Between two nerve cells, there is a space called a synapse. For a message to travel from or to the brain, nerve impulses must be sent from cell to cell. Chemicals called neurotransmitters are released to transmit these impulses across the synapses. In other words, the release of neurotransmitters is how the brain cells communicate with each other. There are many different types of neurotransmitters, and each one has a different purpose.

Acetylcholine
•First known neurotransmitter
•Found in the brain and peripheral nervous system
•Involved in learning and memory, therefore,
•In Alzheimer’s disease, there is a shortage of acetylcholine
•It also slows the heart, makes the bronchi and gut contract, stimulates glands to produce saliva and mucus
•It is the only neurotransmitter in skeletal muscle

Dopamine
•Dopamine does many different things.
•In the interior of the brain, it controls movement
•In Parkinson’s disease, little dopamine reaches the interior of the brain, so the person is unable to control their movement
•In the frontal lobe, dopamine regulates the flow of information coming into the brain.
•In people with schizophrenia, dopamine does not reach the frontal lobe, so they cannot think clearly.
•Drugs like cocaine, opiates, and alcohol help the brain release dopamine

Norepinephrine
•also called noradrenalin
•involved in the regulation of mood
•disturbances in its tracts can cause depression
•higher levels cause aggression
•higher levels along with dopamine and phenylethalimine produce a feeling of infatuation
•because it is released in response to short-term stress, it causes the heart rate and blood pressure to increase.
•it also increases the conversion of glycogen to glucose in the liver, increases the conversion of fats to fatty acids in fat tissue, and it relaxes bronchial smooth muscle to open up air passages to the lungs
•it is also important for learning and forming memories

Oxytocin

•touch causes the body to produce oxytocin which produces the desire to touch and be touched
•people who don’t receive enough touch produce little oxytocin, and as a result certain connections in the brain disappear.
•decreases mental processes and impairs memory which is why hugging helps recover after an argument
•it also plays a large part in establishing maternal behavior. This is vital for successful reproduction since the mother must be attached to her offspring in order to take good care of it.
•induces labor
•associated with well-being in relationships

Phenylethylamine (PEA)
•causes feelings of happiness and relieves depression
•it is thought that a PEA shortage may be the cause of common depression
•increases attention and activity, promotes energy, elevates mood, and favors aggression
•some people are especially sensitive to it, and when the level of PEA rises above the amount they can deal with, symptoms similar to those of an allergy can occur.

Serotonin
•like norepinephrine, it regulates mood, emotion, sleep, and appetite
•Larger amounts of serotonin decrease one’s appetite while smaller amounts make one crave food, especially carbohydrates
•Decreased serotonin contributes to depression
•Aggressive and violent behavior in people is also linked with low levels of serotonin

Wow, Thats pretty interesting, Nice thread.
Never knew any of the names or whatever!

Thank you for posting this, I find this all highly fascinating. I am deeply interested in psychology. The human mind is just amazing to me. Thank you for posting this and sharing this with the world. I intend on being some sort of psychologist. Hopefully a either a neuropsychologist or a cognitive psychologist. You should read a book called "The Shattered Mind" written by Howard Gardner. It is about a neuropsychologist who studies patients with some form of brain damage, combined with the story of a stroke victim named peter franklin. The entire thing is just simply amazing. Well, I am only half way through it, but you see my point? Anywho read that, it has a lot of stuff about this type of subject. I also appreciate a book called "Brain Power" by Franklin Watts. It is a short, but very interesting and informative book. Both of these were written in the 70's but I still hold them above most other books I have read in the sense that they are the most fascinating to me. Did you ever get a degree in psychology? If you have not, I think you should. I see that you would deeply enjoy being a psychologist if this is the type of thing you prefer to study and learn about.

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