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- B
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Listen to a lecture in a biology class, take detailed notes while listening.
chemical – a substance obtained by a chemical process or used for a chemical effect
lethargic – not having energy
mood – temper or altitude
regulate – to control
thermostat – a device used to control temperature in a building
Fill in the following diagram.
Cause 1
Effect 1
1.
2.
Cause 1
Effect 1
3.
4.
Now answer the questions using your notes.
Brain Chemistry and Depression
Summarize the text using your notes and diagram.
- 1: Low serotonin in brain.
- 2: Depression: sadness, low energy, bad mood.
- 3: An increase of serotonin in brain.
- 4: Recover from depression, better mood.
Listen again:
W: With the growth of science, we have gained a better understanding of the relationship between brain chemistry and mood. In fact, it is now clear that changes in the level of certain brain chemicals result in direct changes in mood.
Let's take a look at one such chemical called serotonin. Now, serotonin is a chemical naturally found in the human brain. It is also found in certain foods like mushrooms. So you can regulate your serotonin by eating certain foods. We'll talk more about this later. Okay, so in the human brain, serotonin has many important functions. One of these is the regulation of mood. You can think of serotonin as the thermostat for a person's mood. When you turn up the level of the thermostat, the person's mood improves. When you lower the thermostat, the person's mood sinks. If you have ever seen a depressed person, you notice that they are sad, lethargic, and often cannot get pleasure out of life. In the past, people did not . understand why someone could become depressed like that. We now understand that people become depressed because the levels of serotonin in their brains are low. Their thermostat has been turned way down.
It is not always clear why this happens. What is clear, however, is that once a person's serotonin levels get low enough, they will experience negative moods like anxiety and depression. For that reason, changes in diet, increased exercise and even medication can raise the level of serotonin in the brain and help improve the person's mood. By increasing the level of serotonin in the brain, a depressed person can recover.
