공통영어1 지학 신상근 3과 빈칸 퀴즈

When we ____ ourselves what makes us happy, we often think of the circumstances we are in, what we have, or whom we are with.

From a biological point of ____, however, happiness is largely a chemical experience.

Four main brain chemicals are responsible for creating the sensations and emotions we associate with happiness: endorphins, serotonin, dopamine, and ____.

It is good news for us that ____ can be controlled.

Even when our lives aren’t exactly what we would like them to be, we can improve our mood by ____ in pleasant and healthy activities that increase the amounts of these happiness chemicals.

Let’s take a deeper dive into what each of these chemicals does and how we ____ increase their levels.

Endorphins are natural ____ relievers.

They are “feelgood” chemicals because they can make ____ feel better and put you in a positive state of mind.

When our body feels pain or stress, the brain releases endorphins to ____ the nerve cells that receive the pain signals.

This essentially turns off your pain, helping you ____ functioning,even in painful and stressful situations.

The most well-known way to increase ____ is through slightly challenging exercise which makes you a little short of breath.

Research shows that about twenty to thirty minutes of exercise can ____ boost your endorphin levels significantly.

Another way is to ____ a good laugh.

Share funny videos, tell jokes, and ____ with your friends.

We don’t laugh because we are happy; we are ____ because we laugh.

Serotonin is another brain chemical that plays a ____ role in balancing our mood.

It provides feelings of ____ and also helps decrease our worries and concerns.

When you feel happy and ____ seems right with the world, you are feeling the effects of serotonin.

____ is made from the essential amino acid tryptophan, which must enter our body through our diet.

Therefore, eating foods rich in tryptophan like chicken, beans, eggs, and nuts can boost your body’s natural ____ to make serotonin.

Furthermore, good habits like getting more sunshine and going on short walks ____ do wonders for boosting your levels of serotonin.

Dopamine: The ____ Chemical

Dopamine is an important chemical for ____.

It is called the “reward chemical” because it rewards the brain with happy feelings for meeting goals and ____ things.

We can also feel a dopamine rush when we imagine a ____ achievement.

In both cases, dopamine gives us feelings of joy and satisfaction, encouraging us to seek out ____ goals and find new challenges.

Choosing food higher in protein can be a good way to increase your ____ levels naturally, because it can only be made with the amino acid tyrosine, which is found in many proteins.

____ regular, high-quality sleep may also help keep your dopamine levels balanced and help you feel more alert during the day.

Meditation has also been shown to increase ____ levels.

This, in turn, leads to ____ focus and concentration.

Oxytocin is often called the “love ____” because it promotes social bonding and trust.

It is mainly associated with loving touches and close ____.

Oxytocin ____ be released when you are connecting with people, and it reduces your stress level and calms down your nervous system.

Spending time with friends and ____ ones is a great way to raise your oxytocin levels.

Giving or receiving a massage, shaking hands, or hugging ____ lead to higher levels of oxytocin as well.

If you have a pet, you can increase oxytocin for both yourself and your pet by hugging your little ____.

You may ____ heard the saying “Happiness depends on your attitude, not on what you have.”

Endorphins, serotonin, dopamine, and oxytocin help promote happiness, and you can ____ these happiness chemicals a natural boost with simple activities.

We cannot always choose the situations we find ourselves in, but we can certainly ____ what to do for ourselves.

There’s a lot we can do to boost the happiness chemicals in our ____.

This means that we have control of our own ____!