Serotonin may trigger Phobias!

Too much serotonin may trigger social phobias

Feeling good may have side effects!

Recently it has been noted by psychologists that levels of the chemical serotonin are too high within people who have social phobias. Researchers at the University of Uppsala in Sweden have conducted brain scans on volunteers who have social phobias, such as anxiety. They found that they had produced too much serotonin in their amygdala. The amygdala is a part of the brain's fear center. 

The more serotonin produced within the volunteers the more anxious they felt when exposed to social situations. Researcher Andreas Frick has stated that "Serotonin can increase anxiety, and not decrease it as was previously often assumed".  

What exactly is serotonin? Well, serotonin is a neurotransmitter in the brain which is responsible for regulating brain functions such as mood, appetite and sleep. They are commonly known as the "feel good factor". They are released when one has chocolate. Serotonin is produced by nerve cells and helps to relay message from one side of the brain to the other. 

There has been previous research studies which also show a positive correlation between the amount of serotonin and the levels of anxiety. They have shown that nerve activity in the amygdala is higher in people with social phobia. Furthermore is has been found that the fear centers within their brain are overly sensitive. This is said to be due to the high levels of serotonin. 

To this day social phobias have been treated with drugs such as selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors. This increases that amount of serotonin in the brain. Must these treatments be changed due to the recent findings of serotonin and social phobias? And what exactly do these finding mean to us. Must we lower our serotonin production? Should we stop eating chocolate?... I hope not.