brain chemistry
Neurotransmitter balance system
Brain chemistry refers to the balance and activity of neurotransmitters and other chemicals in the brain that affect mood, cognition, and behavior.
The phrase appears most often in discussions of mental health: Depression isn't a character flaw—it's brain chemistry.
It can serve as shorthand for biological rather than psychological explanations: The medication works by altering brain chemistry.
- serotoninMood-regulating brain chemical
- norepinephrineAlertness and stress hormone
- dopamineReward-linked neural messenger
- glutamateExcitatory neural transmitter
- acetylcholineNeurotransmitter for muscles and memory
antidepressants · depression · reuptake · histamine · amygdala · anxiety · mood swings · mental health · GABA · endorphins · reward system · neurotransmitter · oxytocin · catecholamines · psychopharmacology · antipsychotics · schizophrenia · synapses
- health factorsexercise, psychological factors, genetics, smoking, alcohol
- brain scienceneurons, synapses, neuron, cortex, neuropsychology
- neuroscienceneuron, MRI, neurons, synapses, dendrite
- brain termsdopamine, serotonin, amygdala, neurons, synapses
- hormonesestrogen, testosterone, insulin, hormone, cortisol
- addictionaddiction, drug addiction, substance abuse, drug dependence, substance dependency
brain chemistrybrain structure
Organization of cerebral tissue
brain anatomy · neuroanatomy · neural circuitry · gray matter · white matter
brain chemistryfree will
Autonomous choice capacity
personal choice · environmental factors · learned behavior · upbringing · life experience
brain chemistrysoul
Innermost animating essence
spirit · mind · consciousness · psyche · mental states