Food provides the building blocks for our mental and physical health.
New research reveals that many common foods supply key neurotransmitters that regulate brain and nervous system function.
Understanding how our diet provides these crucial molecules opens up possibilities for supporting brain health through food.
Key Facts:
- Foods contain the same neurotransmitters used by the human nervous system, including acetylcholine, glutamate, GABA, dopamine, serotonin and histamine.
- Levels of these neurotransmitters in foods can be naturally occurring or change during ripening, processing, cooking and preservation.
- Bacteria and fungi in and on foods produce neurotransmitters through their metabolic processes.
- It’s unclear how much dietary neurotransmitters are absorbed and influence nervous system function, but some clinical studies suggest effects.
Source: Nutrients
A Brain Buffet in Every Meal
That grilled chicken breast, dash of soy sauce, handful of walnuts and glass of wine you had with dinner likely contained some familiar neurotransmitters: acetylcholine, glutamate, GABA, dopamine, serotonin and histamine.
New research has identified many common foods and herbs as natural sources of these chemical messengers that nerves use to communicate in the brain and nervous system.
While the implications for brain health are still unclear, understanding the presence of neurotransmitters in the food supply opens up intriguing possibilities about the role of diet in supporting nervous system function.
Acetylcholine: Muscles and Memory
Acetylcholine is the neuromuscular neurotransmitter, critical for muscle activation and memory formation.
Dietary sources include: fruits and veggies like squash, spinach, strawberries and oranges.
The toxic plants nightshade and foxglove also contain high acetylcholine levels.
Herbal medicines like nettle and mistletoe owe some of their effects to the acetylcholine within.
Acetylcholine is part of plants’ and microbes’ metabolic processes and higher levels accumulate during seed germination.
Glutamate: The Main Excitatory Neurotransmitter
Glutamate is the most abundant neurotransmitter in the brain, responsible for activating neurons.
Protein-rich foods naturally contain glutamate as it is a key amino acid.
High levels are found in: tomatoes, mushrooms, cheese, seafood and meats.
Added monosodium glutamate (MSG) increases glutamate in chips, snacks, ready meals and sauces.
During digestion, glutamate is released from glutamic acid, allowing it to act as a neurotransmitter.
GABA: The Main Inhibitory Neurotransmitter
GABA is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter, with anxiety-reducing, sleep-inducing effects.
It’s found in many plants, with high levels in tea leaves, tomatoes, berries and cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and kale.
Fermented foods like yogurt, soy sauce and sourdough bread gain GABA during microbial processing.
GABA supplements are also synthesized.
Dopamine: Motivation & Voluntary Movement
Dopamine drives motivation, voluntary movement and memory.
Bananas, avocados, spinach and tomatoes provide dopamine via diet.
Its presence in velvet bean (via levodopa, a dopamine precursor) may have some therapeutic benefit in Parkinson’s disease.
Levels of levodopa increase during fruit ripening.
Serotonin: Mood, Sleep, Digestion
Serotonin regulates mood, sleep, learning, appetite and digestion.
Good dietary sources include fruits like pineapple, plums, kiwi, plantains and tomatoes.
Spinach and other greens, grains, coffee and teas also supply serotonin.
Microbes in fermented foods can produce tryptophan, serotonin’s amino acid precursor.
Histamine: Wakefulness and Allergies
Histamine promotes wakefulness, adrenaline release and stomach acid production.
Fermented foods like aged cheese, wine and sauerkraut contain elevated levels from microbial processing.
Scombroid fish like tuna are prone to histamine development from bacterial spoilage.
The pollen in herbal dandelion supplements may also provide histamine.
Neurotransmitter Production from Microbes
Microorganisms like bacteria, yeasts, and molds contribute to neurotransmitter levels through their metabolic processes.
Fermenting foods increases GABA, dopamine, serotonin and histamine.
Probiotic bacteria in our digestive systems also generate neurotransmitters that can influence nervous system function.
These “psychobiotics” may be a key link between gut and brain.
Food as Building Blocks of Neurotransmitters
Clinical studies suggest dietary neurotransmitters may have psychoactive properties, but much remains unknown about their absorption and ability to influence the brain.
Further research can help clarify if foods and supplements containing neurotransmitters could provide safe, natural approaches to support brain health and mental well-being.
In the meantime, a diet rich in fresh, minimally processed fruits, vegetables, fermented foods and anti-inflammatory fats lays a healthy foundation for nourishing body and mind.
References
- Study: Dietary Neurotransmitters: A Narrative Review on Current Knowledge (2018)
- Authors: Matteo Briguglio et al.
