Chemistry of a Smile: Dopamine and Serotonin

The science and secrets of joy

Chapter 1

The chemistry of a smile

Chapter 2

How the world translates joy

Chapter 3

The contagion of collective sparks

Chapter 4

Designing a daily spark

YOUR GOAL

Master of The science and secrets of joy

Ch 1 · The chemistry of a smile

joy The facial muscles that create a genuine human smile

joy The Chemistry of a Smile

Just curve your lips up high, (yeah!) / Let that dopamine and serotonin rise! (oh-oh!)

Happiness is the conscious translation of raw pleasure.

joy The vagus nerve pathway linking the human brain, heart, and gut.

The vagus nerve connection

joy Radiant light pathways connect the brain, heart, and gut amid floating golden confetti.

The anatomy of a genuine smile

joy Bright sunbeams filter through spring leaves around floating colorful balloons and bursting bubbles.

The Happy Brain Spark

BETA

joy Tap the sparks of wonder to discover how small joys light up your brain.

Fun Fact

Genuine smiles: In 1862, researcher Guillaume Duchenne proved that a genuine smile of joy, unlike a fake one, involuntarily contracts the muscles around your eyes.

Glossary

neurotransmitter (noun)
A chemical substance that transmits nerve impulses across a synapse to another nerve, muscle, or gland. In 1988, Fritz Strack's pen-in-mouth experiment demonstrated how manipulating facial muscles triggers mood-altering neurotransmitters.

Gossip

Would you rather lose your sense of taste or your ability to laugh?

Quiz

What is the scientific name for a genuine, eye-crinkling smile of true joy?

Satisfaction is a built-in incentive designed to guide our behavior.

joy Four essential neurotransmitters regulate happiness inside the human brain

Gossip

Do you smile more when you are alone or with others?

Quiz

Which chemical messenger, identified by Arvid Carlsson in 1957, is famous for driving our brain's reward and pleasure systems?

True emotion engages parts of us that conscious effort cannot command.

joy The evolutionary roots of joy and social bonding

Quiz

Which neurotransmitter, often boosted by physical touch and social bonding, is known as the 'cuddle hormone'?

Our bodies are wired to instantly quiet down when we experience joy.

Joy is not a reward for connection; it is how we create it.