Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that relay information throughout the brain and body. Of the more than 100 currently identified neurotransmitters, only a few have been shown to have broad reaching effects within the human brain.
Here is a brief comparison of the major neurotransmitters, accompanying functions and diseases associated with dysfunction. (more…)
Neurotransmitters help the body communicate with itself and direct most of the bodies functions. They are like little chemical messengers that relay information to and from the brain millions of times daily. Unfortunately, imbalances in neurotransmitters can create a whole host of problems, including depression, anxiety, obsessive thoughts, difficulty sleeping, compulsive and/or addictive behaviors, cravings for sweets, increased or insatiable hunger, increased pain (like in fibromyalgia), chronic fatigue, the urge to pull out hair (as in trichotillomania), migraines, poor memory, inability to focus or concentrate, weight gain/inability to lose weight, restless legs, Parkinson’s disease and many gastrointestinal imbalances (including Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis). (more…)
Depression is a major problem in the United States. According to the Center for Disease Control 9% of the US population report occasional depression (over 28 million people) and 3.4% suffer from major depression (almost 11 million people). Once more, antidepressants are the most prescribed drugs in the United States, with the CDC reporting that almost 30 million people fill 164 million prescriptions for antidepressants every year. (more…)
The beginning of the year is a great time to figure out how you want to improve your life and become more of the person you’d like to be. However, all too often people make only half-hearted commitments and attempts at self-improvement, which inevitably fail. Most often, this is because they really don’t know WHY they want to make changes and/or the reason for making the changes doesn’t really resonate with them deeply enough or aren’t really important enough to make the tough choices necessary to meet their goals. (more…)
There are several common triggers associated with migraine headaches. Not all individuals with migraines will be sensitive to every trigger, but most people with migraines will have an increased risk of headaches when confronted with one or more of the following: (more…)
As we stated in the first segment of this series, estrogen dominance can be caused either by too much estrogen (either from over production within the body or via hormone replacement) relative to progesterone or from too little progesterone production. We have discussed the effect of high estrogen levels associated with estrogen dominance in another series of posts. However, low progesterone levels also have several negative effects in regard to weight loss. (more…)
Give the gift of health!
