Euphoria

For other uses, see Euphoria (disambiguation).

In humans, playing can induce an intense state of happiness and contentment.

Euphoria (/juːˈfɔəriə/; from Ancient Greek εὐφορία, from εὖ eu, "well", and φέρω pherō, "to bear") (semantically opposite of dysphoria) is medically recognized as a mental and emotional condition in which a person experiences intense feelings of well-being, elation, happiness, excitement and joy.[1]

Technically, euphoria is a psychological affect,[2] but the term is often colloquially used to define emotion and an intense state of transcendent happiness combined with an overwhelming sense of contentment. It has also been defined as an "affective state of exaggerated well-being or elation."[3] The word derives from Greek εὐφορία, "power of enduring easily, fertility".[4][5]

Certain drugs, many of which are addictive, are known to produce a euphoric state. Certain natural rewards (associated with addictive behavior) such as physical exercise can also induce brief states of euphoria.[2] Euphoria has also been cited as being experienced by those participating in certain religious or spiritual rituals and meditation.[6] Euphoria is also known to occur as a symptom of mania.[7]

Types

Exercise-induced

Runners can experience a euphoric state often called a "runner's high".

Continuous physical exercise, particularly aerobic exercise, can induce a state of euphoria; for example, distance running is often associated with a "runner's high", which is a pronounced state of exercise-induced euphoria.[8] Exercise is known to affect dopamine signaling in the nucleus accumbens, producing euphoria as a result, through increased biosynthesis of three particular neurochemicals: anandamide (an endocannabinoid),[9] β-endorphin (an endogenous opioid),[10] and phenethylamine (a trace amine and amphetamine analog).[8][11][12]

Pharmacologically-induced

A large dose of methamphetamine releases significant quantities of dopamine in reward regions of the brain; this causes a drug-induced euphoria.[13]

A euphoriant (or euphorigenic) is a type of psychoactive drug which tends to induce euphoria.[14][15] Most pharmacological euphoriants are addictive drugs due to their reinforcing properties and ability to activate of the brain's reward system.[7]

Stimulants

Dopaminergic stimulants like amphetamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, MDMA, and methylphenidate are euphoriants.[7] Nicotine is a parasympathomimetic stimulant that acts as a mild euphoriant in some people, but not others.[7]

Ethanol

Drinking alcohol (i.e., ethanol) in moderated doses is a euphoriant.[16][17]

Opioids

µ-Opioid receptor agonists are a class of euphoriants[7] that include drugs such as heroin, morphine, codeine, dihydrocodeine, fentanyl, oxycodone, oxymorphone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, methadone, and pethidine.

κ-Opioid receptor antagonists are also capable of inducing euphoria.[7] By contrast, κ-opioid receptor agonists, like the endogenous neuropeptide dynorphin, are known to cause dysphoria,[7] a mood state opposite to euphoria that involves feelings of profound discontent.

Certain drugs, such as buprenorphine, are both mu-opioid agonists and kappa-opioid antagonists, thereby creating euphoria through multiple mechanisms at once.

Cannabinoids

Cannabinoids are a class of euphoriants that act on cannabinoid receptors.[7] This class includes drugs such as THC that are found in cannabis and naturally occurring cannabinoids in humans, known as endocannabinoids, like anandamide.

Inhalants

Certain gasses, like nitrous oxide (N2O, aka "laughing gas"), can induce euphoria when inhaled.[7]

Glucocorticoids

Acute exogenous glucocorticoid administration is known to produce euphoria, but this effect is not observed with long-term exposure.[7]

Music euphoria

Music euphoria is a euphoric state in which the individual is abnormally enchanted by music.[18]

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ "Euphoria". Right Diagnosis. HealthGrades. 2013-05-07. Archived from the original on 2013-11-13. Retrieved 2014-02-17.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Key DSM-IV Mental Status Exam Phrases". Gateway Psychiatric Services. Mood and Affect. Archived from the original on 2013-11-13. Retrieved 2014-02-17.
  3. ↑ A Dictionary of Psychology in Politics & Social Sciences) Oxford
  4. ↑ Euphoria, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon, at Perseus
  5. ↑ Online Etymology Dictionary
  6. ↑ "Psychophysical Correlates of the Practice of Tantric Yoga Meditation". Corby, Roth, Zarcone, & Kopell. Archives of General Hackett, 1978.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9 Malenka RC, Nestler EJ, Hyman SE (2009). Sydor A, Brown RY, ed. Molecular Neuropharmacology: A Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Medical. pp. 191, 350–351, 367–368, 371–375. ISBN 9780071481274. Changes in appetite and energy may reflect abnormalities in various hypothalamic nuclei. Depressed mood and anhedonia (lack of interest in pleasurable activities) in depressed individuals, and euphoria and increased involvement in goal-directed activities in patients, who experience mania, may reflect opposing abnormalities in the nucleus accumbens, medial prefrontal cortex, amygdala, or other structures. ... Although short-term administration of glucocorticoids often produces euphoria and increased energy, the impact of long-lasting increases in endogenous glucocorticoids produced during depression can involve complex adaptations such as those that occur in Cushing syndrome (Chapter 10). ... Exposure to addictive chemicals not only produces extreme euphoric states that may initially motivate drug use, but also causes equally extreme adaptations in reinforcement mechanisms and motivated behavior that eventually lead to compulsive use. Accordingly, the evolutionary design of human and animal brains that has helped to promote our survival also has made us vulnerable to addiction.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Szabo A, Billett E, Turner J (2001). "Phenylethylamine, a possible link to the antidepressant effects of exercise?". Br J Sports Med 35 (5): 342–343. doi:10.1136/bjsm.35.5.342. PMC 1724404. PMID 11579070. The 24 hour mean urinary concentration of phenylacetic acid was increased by 77% after exercise. ... These results show substantial increases in urinary phenylacetic acid levels 24 hours after moderate to high intensity aerobic exercise. As phenylacetic acid reflects phenylethylamine levels3 , and the latter has antidepressant effects, the antidepressant effects of exercise appear to be linked to increased phenylethylamine concentrations. Furthermore, considering the structural and pharmacological analogy between amphetamines and phenylethylamine, it is conceivable that phenylethylamine plays a role in the commonly reported "runners high" thought to be linked to cerebral β-endorphin activity. The substantial increase in phenylacetic acid excretion in this study implies that phenylethylamine levels are affected by exercise. ... A 30 minute bout of moderate to high intensity aerobic exercise increases phenylacetic acid levels in healthy regularly exercising men. The findings may be linked to the antidepressant effects of exercise.
  9. ↑ Tantimonaco M, Ceci R, Sabatini S, Catani MV, Rossi A, Gasperi V et al. (2014). "Physical activity and the endocannabinoid system: an overview". Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 71 (14): 2681–2698. doi:10.1007/s00018-014-1575-6. PMID 24526057. The traditional view that PA engages the monoaminergic and endorphinergic systems has been challenged by the discovery of the endocannabinoid system (ECS), composed of endogenous lipids, their target receptors, and metabolic enzymes. Indeed, direct and indirect evidence suggests that the ECS might mediate some of the PA-triggered effects throughout the body. ... the evidence that PA induces some of the psychotropic effects elicited by the Cannabis sativa active ingredient Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC, Fig. 1), like bliss, euphoria, and peacefulness, strengthened the hypothesis that endocannabinoids (eCBs) might mediate, at least in part, the central and peripheral effects of exercise [14]. ... To our knowledge, the first experimental study aimed at investigating the influence of PA on ECS in humans was carried out in 2003 by Sparling and coworkers [63], who showed increased plasma AEA content after 45 min of moderate intensity exercise on a treadmill or cycle ergometer. Since then, other human studies have shown increased blood concentrations of AEA ... A dependence of the increase of AEA concentration on exercise intensity has also been documented. Plasma levels of AEA significantly increased upon 30 min of moderate exercise (heart rate of 72 and 83 %), but not at lower and significantly higher exercise intensities, where the age-adjusted maximal heart rate was 44 and 92 %, respectively ... Several experimental data support the hypothesis that ECS might, at least in part, explain PA effects on brain functions, because: (1) CB1 is the most abundant GPCR in the brain participating in neuronal plasticity [18]; (2) eCBs are involved in several brain responses that greatly overlap with the positive effects of exercise; (3) eCBs are able to cross the blood–brain barrier [95]; and (4) exercise increases eCB plasma levels [64–67].
  10. ↑ Dinas PC, Koutedakis Y, Flouris AD (2011). "Effects of exercise and physical activity on depression". Ir J Med Sci 180 (2): 319–325. doi:10.1007/s11845-010-0633-9. PMID 21076975. According to the 'endorphins hypothesis', exercise augments the secretion of endogenous opioid peptides in the brain, reducing pain and causing general euphoria. ... Based upon a large effect size, the results confirmed the endorphins hypothesis demonstrating that exercise leads to an increased secretion of endorphins which, in turn, improved mood states.
    β-Endorphin, an endogenous μ-opioid receptor selective ligand, has received much attention in the literature linking endorphins and depression or mood states. ... exercise of sufficient intensity and duration can increase circulating β-endorphin levels. ... Moreover, a recent study demonstrated that exercise and physical activity increased β-endorphin levels in plasma with positive effects on mood. Interestingly, the researchers reported that, independently of sex and age, dynamic anaerobic exercises increased β-endorphin, while resistance and aerobic exercises seem to only have small effects on β-endorphins. ... The results showed that mood tends to be higher in a day an individual exercises as well as that daily activity and exercise overall are strongly linked with mood states. In line with these findings, a recent study showed that exercise significantly improved mood states in non-exercises, recreational exercisers, as well as marathon runners. More importantly, the effects of exercise on mood were twofold in recreational exercisers and marathon runners.
  11. ↑ Lindemann L, Hoener MC (2005). "A renaissance in trace amines inspired by a novel GPCR family". Trends Pharmacol. Sci. 26 (5): 274–281. doi:10.1016/j.tips.2005.03.007. PMID 15860375. The pharmacology of TAs might also contribute to a molecular understanding of the well-recognized antidepressant effect of physical exercise [51]. In addition to the various beneficial effects for brain function mainly attributed to an upregulation of peptide growth factors [52,53], exercise induces a rapidly enhanced excretion of the main β-PEA metabolite β-phenylacetic acid (b-PAA) by on average 77%, compared with resting control subjects [54], which mirrors increased β-PEA synthesis in view of its limited endogenous pool half-life of ~30 s [18,55].
  12. ↑ Berry MD (2007). "The potential of trace amines and their receptors for treating neurological and psychiatric diseases". Rev Recent Clin Trials 2 (1): 3–19. doi:10.2174/157488707779318107. PMID 18473983. It has also been suggested that the antidepressant effects of exercise are due to an exercise-induced elevation of PE [151].
  13. ↑ Methamphetamine | InfoFacts | The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
  14. ↑ Merrian-Webster definition
  15. ↑ "euphoriant". Memidex/WordNet Dictionary. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  16. ↑ Gilman JM, Ramchandani VA, Davis MB, Bjork JM, Hommer DW (2008). "Why we like to drink: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study of the rewarding and anxiolytic effects of alcohol". J. Neurosci. 28 (18): 4583–4591. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0086-08.2008. PMC 2730732. PMID 18448634.
  17. ↑ Morgan, Christopher J.; Abdulla, A.-B. Badawy (2001). "Alcohol-induced euphoria: exclusion of serotonin". Alcohol and Alcoholism 36 (1): 22–25. doi:10.1093/alcalc/36.1.22.
  18. ↑ Salimpoor VN, Benovoy M, Larcher K, Dagher A, Zatorre RJ (2011). "Anatomically distinct dopamine release during anticipation and experience of peak emotion to music". Nat. Neurosci. 14 (2): 257–62. doi:10.1038/nn.2726. PMID 21217764.

Further reading

Look up euphoria in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.