Our moods are influenced by a wide range of different factors — and new research suggests inflammation is one.
Is inflammation behind your lack of motivation?
Inflammation sits at the root of many health conditions and can cause a variety of hidden problems within our bodies. But it can also affect our moods, behaviours, and overall day-to-day functioning. Recent studies have found that inflammation may be affecting
“When our immune system is elevated due to inflammation, our levels of dopamine drop, and our motivation follows.“
our mood and motivation through its adverse effect on our brain’s dopamine system. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that plays a major role in the science of motivation and is directly affected by inflammation. This research suggests that when our immune system is elevated due to inflammation, our levels of dopamine drop, and our motivation follows. When our bodies fight infection, our brain is busy trying to preserve energy and rewire our motivation to focus on other things, so that we aren’t over-exerting our energy reserves. Inflammation disrupts this dopamine system for the brain to redirect its energy.
In simpler terms, if you have inflammation, your dopamine levels are out of balance. This leads you to feel less motivated to complete tasks that require energy. When inflammation is present in the body, your brain doesn’t have the time to waste energy on feeling motivated — it’s too busy prioritising your energy on healing and improving your health.
Low-grade inflammation:
Current research suggests that chronic, low-grade inflammation is behind this relationship (chronic low-level inflammation throughout the body). Chronic low-grade inflammation can simmer unknowingly under the surface of your health, and it’s more common than many of us think. Unhealthy lifestyle habits, such as poor diet, stress, excess alcohol, sedentary behaviour, and lack of sleep, can all cause low-grade inflammation. Chronic
“Chronic low-grade inflammation can simmer unknowingly under the surface of your health.“
inflammation is also called persistent, low-grade inflammation because it produces a steady, low level of inflammation throughout the body, causing a rise in immune system markers found in blood or tissue. And it could be wreaking havoc on your health without you even knowing.
Treatment
Inflammation is the source of many health issues, so it’s not surprising that it might be affecting more than just your physical health. Currently, more research is underway into the exact relationship between inflammation and motivation. And, the evidence unfolding could have major implications for treating physical and mental health. Therapies that target energy utilisation by immune cells could be the next big thing when it comes to treating cases of mental health issues and disorders that may be driven by inflammation.
But there is good news — inflammation is something you can learn to manage and improve through lifestyle interventions and changes. If you’re concerned about your low levels of motivation and simply can’t understand why — you may have low-grade inflammation. And this can be calmed and managed with the help of a doctor, so you could be straight on the path back to optimal motivation.
You can learn more about the research that’s shedding light on the intriguing relationship between motivation and inflammation in the study by Scientists at Emory University.
Leave a Reply