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What
Are Neurotransmitters and What Do They Do?
By Dr. Len
Lopez
Chemical Imbalances and
Neurotransmitters
We’ve all heard the term, “chemical imbalances,”
but what exactly does that mean? We hear it so
often related to depression, anxiety, ADD/ADHD,
PMS, hot flashes, fatigue, cravings, even for
insomnia. But what exactly is a chemical
imbalance? Why do we have them? And more
importantly, how do we re-balance those
chemicals?
When we talk about
chemical imbalances we are talking about
neurotransmitters (NT) -- the little
hormone-like brain messengers that send signals
to our body. NT tell the body what to do...
they can tell the heart to pump faster, the
pupils to dilate, your arteries to constrict,
your lungs to expand, and so much more. But
they can also tell your brain to either get
excited and stimulated or to quiet down and
relax…it all depends on which NT your body is
triggering.
NT can easily be
thought of as either excitatory or inhibitory.
The excitatory NT tells the brain and body to
become excited, to prepare for some stimulation
or activation. The predominate excitatory NT
that put us in that ‘fight or flight’ mode are
epinephrine (more commonly known as adrenaline),
as well as norepinephrine, dopamine, glutamate,
phenylethylamine (PEA) commonly found in
chocolate, histamine and aspartic acid.
The inhibitory NT
are GABA, serotonin, taurine, and glycine. They
tell the brain and body to calm down and relax.
Excitatory and inhibitory NT essentially work in
opposition to each other. One analogy is that
the excitatory NT are like the gas pedal in a
car, and the inhibitory NT are the brakes. You
need them both working properly so you don’t
crash your car, and if they are out of balance,
problems set in.
Depression,
anxiety, ADD/ADHD, insomnia, cravings, weight
gain, fatigue, PMS, and hot flashes are usually
a result of NT or chemical imbalances. The body
may be producing too much or not enough of the
excitatory or inhibitory NT. Most
antidepressants, anti-anxiety, and
anti-convulsing medications sold today are
trying to manipulate the levels of serotonin and
or dopamine in the body. In fact, many weight
loss drugs are designed to manipulate the
serotonin and dopamine levels, which are both
associated with mood, pleasure and
satisfaction.
Stress and poor
diet have the biggest influence on over-or-under
production of NT. Stress will trigger the
adrenal glands to produce more cortisol and
adrenaline. Constant stress keeps us in that
“fight or flight’ mode throughout the day, which
keeps taxing the adrenal glands to continually
produce more adrenaline and noradrenaline. Like
cortisol, if stress is prolonged, the adrenals
can reach a point where they no longer produce
adequate levels of adrenaline and noradrenaline.
This is classic adrenal exhaustion and
fatigue…the inability for the adrenals to
produce adequate levels of adrenaline,
noradrenaline and cortisol.
Poor diet will
affect NT in a few different ways. First,
inadequate intake of essential nutrients will
result in deficiencies and the inability to
produce adequate levels of various NT. This
usually occurs because of eating too much
refined and processed food and NOT enough intake
of fruits and vegetables.
The second
culprit, with regards to diet, is our inability
to maintain our blood sugar throughout the day.
This is usually a result of missing meals, or
eating too much refined food, which causes our
blood sugar to fluctuate. This causes the
adrenal glands to produce more cortisol,
adrenaline and noradrenaline. Yes, they are
stress hormones, but they also are produced to
raise blood sugar when it drops. This is
another way that we can overtax our adrenal
glands, since they have to work so hard to
stabilize our blood sugar.
The third way poor
diet affects our adrenals is when we eat foods
that contribute to bloating, gas, indigestion,
heartburn, and other irritable bowel problems.
When we suffer from those symptoms we irritate
and inflame our intestinal lining. This
triggers the adrenals to produce more cortisol
to reduce the inflammation. Again, we deplete
our adrenal glands. This continuous draw on our
adrenals will eventually result in adrenal
exhaustion and fatigue.
As you can see
chemical imbalances are NT imbalances, which can
be corrected to help with so many health
challenges. This is why measuring
neurotransmitter and
adrenal function
is always a smart first step in planning a
strategy to help you restore your health. This
is also why taking a supplement specifically
formulated to nourish and support adrenal
function, such as
Adrenal-Fuel ™,
is so beneficial.
 Dr.
Len Lopez began his career with a goal to treat patients with natural
methods. He holds a number of certifications, including Certified
Clinical Nutritionist (C.C.N.), Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician
(C.C.S.P.), Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (C.S.C.S.),
with additional training in Applied Kinesiology and Homeopathy. Dr.
Lopez has appeared on numerous TV and radio programs and is the author
of the book To Burn or Not to Burn - Fat is the Question. His approach
to healing is very simple - treat the cause, not the symptom!
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