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Summarize text below to facts. Each fact beginning with bullet: {{paragraph}}

Welcome

  • There is an event related to dopamine discussed in the Huberman Lab Podcast.
  • Dopamine is not often discussed and there is recent history related to it.
  • A person's baseline of dopamine can be influenced by activities.
  • Caffeine ingestion is

Introduction & Tool 1 to Induce Lasting Dopamine

the importance of consulting with a healthcare professional before beginning any new practice.

  • Andrew Huberman is a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine.
  • The discussion focuses on dopamine and its relation to motivation, desire, craving, satisfaction,

Sponsors: Roka, InsideTracker, Headspace

  • This podcast is separate from the speaker's teaching and research roles at Stanford, but is part of the effort to bring zero cost information about science and science related tools to the public.
  • The first sponsor of today's podcast is Roka, which makes eyeglasses and

Upcoming (Zero-Cost) Neuroplasticity Seminar for Educators

  • Logitech is hosting an event called "Rethink Education, the Biology of Learning Reimagining Learning through Neuroscience"
  • The event will include speakers discussing neuroplasticity and its application to teaching and learning
  • A "plasticity super protocol" will

What Dopamine (Really) Does

  • Dopamine is used to maintain a baseline level of dopamine in the body, as well as peak levels that are higher than the baseline.
  • The peaks and baselines interact with each other and have an effect on motivation and drive, cravings, time perception, movement

Two Main Neural Circuits for Dopamine

is controlled by what's called a feed-forward loop.

  • There are two main neural circuits in the brain that dopamine uses to exert its effects: the mesocorticolimbic pathway which involves structures like the nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex, and

How Dopamine Is Released: Locally and Broadly

the dopamine system.

  • Synapses are the spaces between neurons where nerve cells communicate with one another by making each other electrically active or less electrically active.
  • Dopamine can engage in what's called volumetric release, which is the dumping out of dopamine everywhere.

Fast and Slow Effects of Dopamine

  • Dopamine works through G protein-coupled receptors, which have a slower response than other chemicals in the brain.
  • There are two pathways for dopamine to communicate: one for movement and one for motivation and craving.
  • Dopamine can operate on two

Dopamine Neurons Co-Release Glutamate

  • Dopamine does not work on its own and is released with glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter.
  • Dopamine is responsible for movement, motivation, and drive through two pathways.
  • Dopamine stimulates action by releasing excitatory neurotransmitters and increases

Your Dopamine History Really Matters

and one from the life of my friend.

  • Dopamine plays an important role in influencing experience and motivation.
  • Dopamine release is affected by a person's current baseline level, as well as previous dopamine peaks.
  • Over time, repeated engagement in enjoyable activities may

Parkinson’s & Drugs That Kill Dopamine Neurons. My Dopamine Experience

  • In the 1980s, an outbreak of Parkinson-like symptoms occurred in a young population due to illicit laboratories creating a drug called MPTP rather than the intended MPPP.
  • MPTP kills the dopaminergic neurons of the nigrostriatal and mesocorticol

Tool 3 Controlling Dopamine Peaks & Baselines

  • All humans have different baseline levels of dopamine.
  • Dopamine acts together with other chemicals in the nervous system, namely epinephrin (aka adrenaline).
  • Epinephrin is necessary for any activity and is released from the adrenal glands near the kidneys

Chocolate, Sex (Pursuit & Behavior), Nicotine, Cocaine, Amphetamine, Exercise

  • Chocolate increases dopamine 1.5 times above baseline
  • Sex increases dopamine two times above baseline
  • Nicotine increases dopamine two and a half times above baseline
  • Cocaine increases dopamine two and a half times above baseline
  • Amphetamine increases dopamine 10 times above baseline
  • Exercise increases

Tool 4 Caffeine Increases Dopamine Receptors

and valleys.

  • Dopamine can be evoked by different activities and substances like caffeine, chocolate, sex, nicotine, cocaine, and amphetamine.
  • A 2015 paper showed that regular ingestion of caffeine increases up regulation of dopamine receptors, so it allows users to experience more of dopamine

Pursuit, Excitement & Your “Dopamine Setpoint”

  • Dopamine is a universal currency for forging and seeking resources, such as food, water, shelter, and social connection.
  • Seeking rewards causes an increase in dopamine levels, but the level will eventually drop below the baseline.
  • The extent to which the dopamine level

Your Pleasure-Pain Balance & Defining “Pain”

to be released.

  • Dr. Anna Lembke is the head of the Addiction Dual Diagnosis Clinic at Stanford.
  • Dr. Lembke wrote "Dopamine Nation: Finding Balance in the Age of Indulgence" and another book, "The Molecule

Addiction, Dopamine Depletion, & Replenishing Dopamine

that evoke dopamine.

  • Most people do not experience or pursue enormous increases in dopamine leading to severe drops in baseline.
  • Addiction is when somebody pursues a drug or activity that leads to huge increases in dopamine.
  • Afterward, the baseline of dopamine drops due to depletion

Tool 5 Ensure Your Best (Healthy) Dopamine Release

because we've already discussed how intermittent schedules are the way to keep you engaged in these activities, so maybe what we should do is every third time, delete the dopamine-releasing applications. Every third time, don't go

Smart Phones: How They Alter Our Dopamine Circuits

  • It is common to see people using digital technology while doing other activities.
  • Levels of depression and lack of motivation are increasing.
  • Overstimulating with multiple sources of dopamine can lead to disruptions in baseline levels.
  • Working out without digital technology can be

Stimulants & Spiking Dopamine: Counterproductive for Work, Exercise & Attention

  • Stimulants, with the exception of caffeine, should not be used to stay motivated or focused when engaging in activities.
  • Caffeine can actually have a positive effect on dopamine receptors and make dopamine more functional within brain and body chemistry.
  • Energy drinks and pre-work

Caffeine Sources Matter: Yerba Mate & Dopamine Neuron Protection

  • Caffeine can increase the density and efficacy of dopamine receptors.
  • Yerba mate contains caffeine, antioxidants, and something called GLP-1 which is favorable for management of blood sugar levels.
  • Studies have shown that ingestion of yerba mate can

Caffeine & Neurotoxicity of MDMA

with dopamine regulation.

  1. Caffeine can be beneficial in some contexts but can be dangerous when taken with MDMA (ecstasy).
  2. MDMA is under investigation for its potential to treat trauma and depression, but its neurotoxicity has been controversial.
  3. Early studies suggesting

Amphetamine, Cocaine & Detrimental Rewiring of Dopamine Circuits

  • Amphetamine and cocaine limit the ability of later experience to promote structural plasticity in the neocortex and nucleus accumbens.
  • Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to change in response to experience.
  • Ingesting amphetamine and cocaine causes

Ritalin, Adderall, (Ar)Modafinil: ADHD versus non-Prescription Uses

  • Drugs such as Adderall, Ritalin, modafinil and armodafinil lead to high amounts of dopamine production.
  • These drugs have a valid clinical use in addressing symptoms of ADHD.
  • There is also widespread non-prescription, non

Tool 6 Stimulating Long-Lasting Increases in Baseline Dopamine

  • Dopamine feels great and can be evoked through activities such as cold water exposure.
  • Cold water shock can be dangerous, so it is important to approach with caution.
  • Exposure to water at a temperature of 14 degrees Celsius can cause a 2.5 times increase

Tool 7 Tuning Your Dopamine for Ongoing Motivation

  • Rewarding ourselves for hard work can lower our pleasure of the activity and make us less likely to engage in it in the future.
  • Experiments with children showed that when they were rewarded for engaging in an activity they liked (in this case drawing), once the reward was removed they

Tool 8 Intermittent Fasting: Effects on Dopamine

is intermittent fasting.

  • Intermittent fasting is a practice of eating only within a set window of time for the purpose of evoking dopamine release.
  • People find it easier to not eat at all than to eat a smaller portion, which has to do with the reward-evoking

Validation of Your Pre-Existing Beliefs Increases Dopamine

, but the same thing that applies to sugar appetite, it applies to other forms of reward.

  • A study published in the journal Neuron last year showed that hearing something that reinforces prior beliefs can lead to dopamine release.
  • The dopamine pathway is vulnerable to subjective interpretation and

Tool 9 Quitting Sugar & Highly Palatable Foods: 48 Hours

  • Our sense of pleasure from sweet and savory foods is influenced by dopamine release.
  • Big dopamine releases make it harder to experience more big dopamine releases.
  • Dopamine is a universal currency that establishes value based on present and prior experiences.
  • Highly

Pornography

it.

  • Dopamine levels influence our current and future behavior.
  • Intense pornography can negatively shape real world romantic and sexual interactions.
  • Discussion of the ethical considerations of pornography are individual decisions based on age and other factors.
  • Any activity that evokes a

Wellbutrin & Depression & Anxiety

who smoke who are not depressed, and so for them there may be other drugs that better target the nicotine receptor.

  • Increasing levels of dopamine can be desirable and clinically helpful.
  • Wellbutrin (bupropion) increases dopamine and norepinephrine, providing an

Tool 10 Mucuna Pruriens, Prolactin, Sperm, Crash Warning

to other supplements that are indirect precursors to dopamine

  • Macuna Pruriens is a velvety bean whose contents are l-DOPA, which is the precursor to dopamine.
  • It can be bought over the counter in the United States and has been shown to

Tool 11 L-Tyrosine: Dosages, Duration of Effects & Specificity

your dopamine levels so you want to be mindful of things like caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine, which can all reduce your dopamine levels.

  • L-tyrosine is an amino acid precursor to l-DOPA in the dopamine synthesis pathway, sold over the counter in the United

Tool 12 Avoiding Melatonin Supplementation, & Avoiding Light 10pm-4am

  • Melatonin can help one get to sleep, but not stay asleep.
  • Matt Walker (sleep expert from University of California, Berkeley) has stated that the use of melatonin, except for treating jet lag, is generally not a good idea.
  • A study published in

Tool 13 Phenylethylamine (with Alpha-GPC) For Dopamine Focus/Energy

  • PEA (phenethylamine) is a compound found in various foods, including chocolate, which increases dopamine levels.
  • It can be taken as a focus and work aid, usually in dosages of 500 milligrams of PEA and 300 milligrams of Alpha

Tool 14 Huperzine A

  • Huperzine A is a compound sold over the counter in the US that increases acetylcholine transmission and dopamine release in the medial prefrontal cortex and hippocampus.
  • It is gaining popularity as a nootropic and for increasing dopamine.
  • It is recommended to research

Social Connections, Oxytocin & Dopamine Release

-Rob Malenka, a colleague in the department of psychiatry at Stanford, discovered that oxytocin and social connection directly stimulate the dopamine pathway. -The paper published in 2017 in Science was titled "Gaining of Social Reward by Oxytocin in the Ventral Tegmental

Direct & Indirect Effects: e.g., Maca; Synthesis & Application

  • The dopamine pathways and circuitries can be directly and indirectly stimulated.
  • Maca root and the gut microbiome are examples of indirect mechanisms that can influence dopamine levels.
  • Cold water exposure leads to large, sustained increases in dopamine.
  • Dopamine levels are

Zero-Cost & Other Ways To Support Podcast & Research

  • Subscribe to our YouTube channel to support us
  • Comment or suggest a guest or topic for us to cover
  • Subscribe to us on Apple and Spotify
  • Leave us a five-star review and comment on Apple
  • Check out the sponsors mentioned at the beginning

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