What is serotonin?

Happiness is just a feeling that you experience when certain hormones are released in your body.

The hormone Serotonin which is one of the hormones responsible for happiness lifts the mood, keeps you energetic and prevents depression .

how to increase serotonin levels naturally

One of the main factors affecting the natural release of serotonin in the blood is exposure to sunlight.

It was found that if you didn't get exposed to enough sunlight on a certain day you may experience some mood swings and even bad moods during the day. If you want to increase serotonin levels naturally then make sure you get exposed to sunlight for few minutes each day.

Some people have a bad habit of waking up late and this may decrease the serotonin levels in their blood and thus forces them to experience bad moods.

There are many reports of depressed people who felt much better and experienced great mood improvements after committing to walking in the sun for 30 minutes each day. This happened because the levels of serotonin, which usually decrease as a result of depression, was increased because of the sunlight.

Increasing serotonin levels naturally without sunlight

If your life style prevents you from getting exposed to sunlight then don't worry!! You can still increase your serotonin levels naturally by buying something called a light box which is a device that was specially designed to emulate the effect of the sun rays.

Increasing serotonin levels naturally through your diet

Some foods can help you increase your serotonin levels naturally like carbohydrates, chocolates and proteins. This is the main reason why some people feel like eating chocolate when feeling down. 

The problem that sometimes arises is that some people gain weight only because they always seek food to lift their moods. Those people usually put on weight for reasons that are not related to food itself but rather because of their own emotional state. In my book The ultimate guide to weight loss I explained how depression, stress and anxiety can be the reason behind over eating and in turn weight gain.

Don't fall into this trap and don't keep eating just to lift your mood or to make yourself feel better but instead find the real reasons that are making you feel bad and deal with them.

Written by M.Farouk Radwan, MSc.