3189: Can You Overdose on Happiness? by Emma Hogan with Les Mills on Positive Living

Optimal Health Daily - Fitness and Nutrition

Optimal Living Daily LLC

Fitness, Health & Fitness, Nutrition

4.4 • 671 Ratings

🗓️ 15 November 2025

⏱️ 9 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3189: Emma Hogan unpacks the surprising science behind why chasing pleasure might actually make us unhappier. Drawing from Dr. Robert Lustig’s insights, she reveals how dopamine and serotonin function differently in the brain, highlighting the dangers of overstimulating dopamine while offering a simple, four-part solution to foster lasting happiness through natural serotonin boosts. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.lesmills.com/fit-planet/health/pleasure-versus-happiness/ Quotes to ponder: "People eating a highly processed food diet probably are not even getting the precursor to make the serotonin in the first place, so that is a great reason for unhappiness." "So the more pleasure you seek, the more unhappy you get." "The complex relationship between serotonin and dopamine is why addiction and depression are different sides of the same coin." Episode references: The Hacking of the American Mind by Robert H. Lustig: https://www.amazon.com/Hacking-American-Mind-Corporate-Takeover/dp/1101982942 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.6	This is Optimal Health Daily.
0:03.0	Can You overdose on happiness by Emma Hogan of lesmills.com.
0:08.0	And I'm Dr. Neil Miley.
0:09.6	Hey there, happy Saturday.
0:11.0	Thank you so much for being here.
0:12.8	And welcome back to Optimal Health Daily,
0:15.4	where I act as your narrator of the best health and fitness blogs all for free.
0:20.5	And with that, let's get right to today's post and start optimizing your life.
0:28.5	Can You Overdose on Happiness by Emma Hogan of Les Mills.com.
0:35.5	Serotonin and dopamine are often bundled together as a duo of powerful neurotransmitters that spark
0:42.0	positive emotion. But to the surprise of many, dopamine and serotonin do not go hand in hand.
0:49.9	Pediatric endocrinologist Robert Lustig says the key to this lies in the fact that
0:55.2	dopamine and serotonin are two different biochemicals, two different neurotransmitters,
1:00.5	in two different areas of the brain.
1:03.4	Serotonin is associated with feelings of happiness, focus, and calm.
1:08.8	Dopamine is more aligned to feelings of reward and motivation. When you get a quick
1:14.2	dopamine hit, it creates a rush of pleasure. It feels good. But it doesn't last long, which is where
1:21.0	issues can start to arise. Having high doses of dopamine concentrated in specific areas of the brain
1:27.4	is linked to being overly competitive,
1:30.6	overly aggressive, and having a lack of impulse control.
1:34.9	It's been associated with ADHD, binge eating, and addiction,
1:39.1	as well as mental health conditions and mood disorders.
	...

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