Happiness is influenced by a complex interplay of various chemicals in our brain, particularly four key neurotransmitters, D.O.S.E or Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin, and Endorphins. These chemicals, often referred to as "happiness chemicals," are responsible for creating feelings of joy, motivation, connection, and calm.

However, when there's a deficiency in any of these, it can significantly affect our mood, energy, and overall well-being. Let’s dive into what these four neurotransmitters are, how their deficiency impacts us, and how we can boost their levels naturally.

Dopamine: The Motivation and Reward Chemical

Dopamine is often called the "motivation molecule." It plays a major role in enabling motivation, learning, and the pleasure-reward system in the brain. When we accomplish something — whether it’s finishing a project, completing a workout, or achieving a goal — dopamine gives us that sense of satisfaction and determination to continue.

Deficiency Effects:

When dopamine levels are low, it can lead to procrastination, low self-esteem, lack of focus, and general fatigue. A person might feel anxious, hopeless, or experience mood swings because the brain isn’t getting the reward signals it needs.

Boosting Dopamine:

You can increase dopamine levels by setting and achieving small goals, exercising regularly, eating foods rich in L-Tyrosine (such as almonds, avocados, and eggs), and practicing mindfulness or meditation. Engaging in creative activities like writing or drawing also helps boost dopamine levels.

Oxytocin: The Bonding Chemical

Oxytocin is often referred to as the "love hormone" or "cuddle hormone" because it plays a major role in social bonding and trust. It’s released when we hug, touch, or engage in other forms of physical affection. Oxytocin fosters feelings of connection and emotional intimacy, making it essential for relationships, family bonding, and even team cooperation.

Deficiency Effects:

A lack of oxytocin can lead to feelings of loneliness, stress, anxiety, and difficulties in forming or maintaining relationships. Low oxytocin levels are associated with feelings of isolation and disconnection from others.

Boosting Oxytocin:

You can raise your oxytocin levels through physical touch, socialising, spending quality time with loved ones, and even engaging in activities like massage or listening to soothing music. Acts of kindness, such as helping others or volunteering, also help release oxytocin.

Serotonin: The Mood Stabiliser

Serotonin is responsible for feelings of well-being and contentment. It helps regulate mood, sleep, digestion, and even social behavior. People who have balanced serotonin levels often feel calm, confident, and emotionally stable. Serotonin is crucial in helping people feel valued and significant among their peers.

Deficiency Effects:

Low serotonin levels are linked to depression, low self-esteem, irritability, and mood swings. Individuals may feel overly sensitive to criticism, experience panic attacks, or struggle with social phobias when serotonin is deficient.

Boosting Serotonin:

You can boost serotonin by getting regular exercise, exposing yourself to sunlight, engaging in cold showers or massages, and practicing mindfulness. Simple activities like walking in nature, meditating, or doing yoga are also effective serotonin enhancers.

Endorphins: The Pain Reliever

Endorphins are the body’s natural painkillers. Released in response to stress, pain, or intense physical activity, they help alleviate discomfort and promote a sense of euphoria. Endorphins are what make you feel good after a workout or a hearty laugh, often referred to as the "runner's high."

Deficiency Effects:

Without enough endorphins, people may experience anxiety, depression, chronic pain, and insomnia. A deficiency in endorphins can make daily life feel overwhelming and physically draining.

Boosting Endorphins:

To boost endorphins, engage in laughter, exercise, and stretching activities. Eating spicy foods or dark chocolate can also stimulate endorphin production. Regular massage therapy and meditation are other ways to naturally elevate endorphin levels.

Sharing a health update of the beloved actor Bruce Willis, his wife Emma Hemmings opened up about how the condition is affecting the actor. In an interview with NewsNation, she spoke on the misconception that the Die-Hard superstar had Alzheimer’s.

“FTD isn’t Alzheimer’s,” she stressed. She clarified that while Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) affects his ability to communicate and behave, “Bruce doesn’t have Alzheimer’s. So, he does know who we are.”

She noted that while he struggles to verbalize his love, words are not necessary for their family. "We don’t need words," she said. "We have a very deep connection, and we have learned to sort of meet him where he’s at." FTD symptoms can include difficulty with speech, changes in personality, and slow movements, and there is currently no cure.

The Alzheimer’s Research Association explains that dementia is an "umbrella term" used to describe problems with memory, thinking, and reasoning. It's not a single disease. Instead, diseases like Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) and Alzheimer's are two different causes that lead to similar, but different symptoms.

It is very important for doctors to know the differences between FTD and Alzheimer's. Getting the correct diagnosis early helps patients get the right treatment sooner. This can greatly improve their health and overall quality of life.

How Is FTD Different from Alzheimer’s Disease?

The biggest difference between these two conditions is which part of the brain they damage first. This difference explains why the early symptoms are so distinct.

What Part of the Brain Does FTD affect?

Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), as its name suggests, mainly affects the front (frontal) and sides (temporal) of the brain. These areas are like the control center for your personality, behavior, and language skills. For example, the frontal lobe handles judgment and controlling your emotions, and the temporal lobe helps you process what you hear and form memories.

What Part of the Brain Does Alzheimer’s Affect?

In contrast, Alzheimer's disease usually starts by damaging areas crucial for memory, such as the hippocampus. These are the parts of the brain that help you learn new things and retrieve old memories. As Alzheimer's gets worse, the damage spreads to more areas of the brain, affecting memory, behavior, language, and even how you see things.

What Ages Do FTD and Alzheimer’s Typically Start?

Another key difference is when people usually start showing symptoms.

FTD often begins when people are younger, typically between 40 and 60 years old. This is why it's sometimes called an earlier-onset dementia.

Alzheimer's is much more common in older adults, usually affecting people who are 65 and over. Getting older is the biggest risk factor for Alzheimer's, but remember, it is not a normal part of getting older or healthy aging.

How Are The Symptoms of FTD different from Alzheimer’s?

While both diseases cause dementia, the first symptoms are usually very distinct, which helps doctors tell them apart.

In early Alzheimer's, the main symptom is memory loss.

• Often forgetting recent conversations or events.
• Having trouble with spatial orientation, which means they might get lost in places they know well.
• Struggle to find the right word, their ability to speak clearly and understand others usually stays better for longer than in FTD.
• Delusions or hallucinations also happen more often as Alzheimer's gets worse.

In early FTD, the initial signs are usually behavioral changes or language problems.

• Acting impulsively
• Lose their filter in conversation
• Become very withdrawn.

This is common in the most frequent type of FTD, called behavioral variant FTD (bvFTD). In another type of FTD called Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA), the first problem is a difficulty with,

• Speaking
• Understanding language
• Writing.
• While people with advanced FTD will eventually have memory loss, it's not the primary symptom at the beginning.

How Has FTD Affected Bruce Willis?

In the interview Emma Hemmings admitted Bruce is unaware of his frontotemporal dementia (FTD) diagnosis.

She explained that it is a part of the disease itself for the person not to realize their health is declining. When asked about a fear that Willis might have voiced his distress about his condition, she confirmed:

"The person doesn’t realize that they are experiencing a decline in their health. So it’s not denial; this is just a part of the disease. So, it’s a blessing and a curse. But I am grateful that Bruce never tapped into the idea that he had FTD.”

What's making headlines up recently is a new study, which yet has not been peer reviewed about how sleep medicine could have adverse affects on your cardiovascular health. Melatonin, which is a hormone produced naturally by the body to regulate the sleep-wake cycle, is also sold as dietary supplement, typically made synthetically, has been linked to causing heart failure.

The research is from an unpublished study that is set to be presented at the American Heart Association's scientific conference in New Orleans next week. The research notes that the sleep supplement could be linked to 90% increase in heart failure. This has drawn mixed reactions from sleep medicine experts and cardiologists. The experts have urged the public not to panic, and have called for more research into using melatonin for longer duration. Experts who have reviewed the study have noted for the limitations, which has made it challenging to determine whether and how long-term use of the sleep supplement could lead to heart failure. This happens when your heart is not pumping as well as it should.

As per Muhammad Rishi, an associate professor of clinical medicine and spokesperson for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, "The findings are certainly provocative and warrant attention, especially given the widespread perception of melatonin as a benign, ‘natural’ sleep aid. However, the study is observational and based on electronic health record data, which limits its ability to establish causality."

What Is The Relation Between Melatonin And Heart?

Melatonin is secreted by brain's pineal gland in the evening, and it signals the body for sleep time. However, there are doctors who do not recommend using the supplement to treat chronic insomnia, reports the Washington Post. The reason being that the evidence for its efficacy is limited and inconsistent. The experts note that there is lack of data on its long-term usage.

In the US, melatonin does not require any prescription, however, experts have pointed out that it can only help people to treat sleep-timing problems due to jet lag or shift work, on low doses. Without being prescribed, these medicines could be procured over-the-counter, and could be used to treat chronic sleep disorders without proper guidance.

The new study that analyzed the international database of health records from five years of over 130,000 adults diagnosed with insomnia was able to recognize 65,000 participants who had been prescribed the supplement at least once for one year. The study noted that over the course of five years, around 3,000 people who took had melatonin experienced heart failure.

People who had already been diagnosed with heart failure, or were prescribed other sleep medicines, were excluded from the study.

The patients who took melatonin, were then compared with the ones who did not have melatonin, but had insomnia. The researchers found that this comparison allowed them to account for a variety of factors that could link a person's risk for heart failure, including other health conditions.

Ekenedilichukwu Nnadi, the lead author of the new report and chief resident in internal medicine at SUNY Downstate/Kings County Primary Care in Brooklyn, said, "What stood out most was that we found any association at all."

Nnadi said, "Melatonin is generally viewed as a very safe supplement, as something people, and even physicians, don’t usually worry much about, so we honestly didn’t expect to see a clear signal linking long-term use with higher rates of heart failure, hospitalizations and death.” However, the lead author did emphasize that the findings only showed association and not causation.

He said that the study does not prove that melatonin directly causes heart failure. “It simply shows that people with chronic insomnia who took melatonin long term were more likely to experience these outcomes. It’s an unexpected and important signal that needs to be studied further, ideally in randomized trials.”

The NHS has issued a warning for anyone using a common painkiller, highlighting possible harmful interactions with other medications. Across the UK, many people turn to over-the-counter medicines for daily aches, colds, and minor illnesses. Among these, paracetamol is one of the most widely used, often taken for headaches, back pain, and cold symptoms. But, like any medication, it carries certain risks.

Who Should Be Careful?

The NHS has provided guidance on using paracetamol safely, including which drug combinations should be avoided. “Paracetamol is not suitable for some people,” the health body explains. This includes individuals who take warfarin, a drug that prevents blood clots. If you are on warfarin, you should check with your GP before taking paracetamol, the NHS advises. “Paracetamol can raise the risk of bleeding in those who regularly take warfarin.”

Safe Dosing Guidelines

Small doses of paracetamol alongside warfarin are generally considered safe. The NHS adds: “It’s safe to take paracetamol if you’re on warfarin. Stick to the lowest dose that relieves your pain. Exceeding four 500mg tablets in 24 hours for more than a few days can slow your blood clotting, putting you at risk of bleeding.”

Avoid Double Dosing

Combining paracetamol with other medicines containing the same ingredient—like co-codamol or some cold and flu remedies—can be risky due to the danger of overdose. Other common painkillers, such as ibuprofen, aspirin, or codeine, do not contain paracetamol and can safely be taken at the same time.

Check with Your Doctor

The NHS advises consulting a doctor before taking paracetamol if you’re on medications for epilepsy or tuberculosis (TB), as these combinations can also pose risks.

Herbal Remedies and Supplements

Generally, paracetamol is not affected by herbal supplements, though the NHS notes: “There isn’t enough information to say whether herbal remedies, complementary medicines, or supplements are safe with paracetamol. They are not tested the same way as prescription or pharmacy medications and may interact differently.” Patients should inform their doctor or pharmacist about any other medicines or supplements they are taking.

Side Effects of Paracetamol

When taken at the recommended dose, paracetamol “very rarely” causes side effects. For a full list, refer to the information leaflet inside the packaging.

Serious Allergic Reactions

In rare cases, a serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) can occur. The NHS advises calling 999 immediately if you notice:

• Swelling of lips, mouth, throat, or tongue
• Rapid or labored breathing, wheezing, or a choking sensation
• A tight throat or difficulty swallowing
• Skin, lips, or tongue turning blue, grey, or pale (on darker skin, check palms or soles)
• Sudden confusion, extreme drowsiness, or dizziness
• Fainting and unresponsiveness
• A child appearing limp, floppy, or unresponsive, with difficulty lifting or focusing their head