The “feel good” hormones that we’ve discussed in previous blogs can have wonderful benefits for your mental and even physical health. (See The Virtuous Cycle of Feel-Good Hormones.) But, as we also touched upon, hormones do not function according to a value system — they reward (that is, are triggered by) addictive behavior just as surely as they reward positive behavior. That simple fact has led to some fads that are easily misunderstood.

The ”dopamine fast” is one of these fads that you may have heard about. But questions immediately arise when you think about that somewhat confusing phrase. Are you trying to get your body to not release dopamine? Are you fasting in order to trigger the release of dopamine? And, in a larger sense, Can you control your hormones?

For starters, let’s consider the origin of the term dopamine fast. It was coined by Dr. Cameron Sepah, a psychiatrist who was just looking for a catchy name for a basic idea. That idea goes back to the fact that dopamine can reinforce addictions. Writing for Harvard Health Publishing, Peter Grinspoon, MD, explains what the concept is really about. “What Sepah intended with his dopamine fast was a method, based on cognitive behavioral therapy, by which we can become less dominated by the unhealthy stimuli — the texts, the notifications, the beeps, the rings — that accompany living in a modern, technology-centric society. Instead of automatically responding to these reward-inducing cues, which provide us with an immediate but short-lived charge, we ought to allow our brains to take breaks and reset from this potentially addictive bombardment.”

There remains much research to be done about the complexity of life in a technology-driven world, but it’s safe to say that natural pleasures are proven ways to positively affect your mental health. Anything from long walks in nature to listening to beautiful music — free from the distraction of technology — is good for you. Enjoying simple pleasures, in turn, helps you avoid compulsive behaviors encouraged by a shot of dopamine when you entertain them, including anything from emotional eating to online gambling.

A basic fact about dopamine that needs to be acknowledged is that it’s a naturally occurring neurotransmitter. You can’t prevent it from being produced, which means you cannot by force of will “fast” from it. Some of the confusion seems to arise when people think of dopamine itself as the addiction. It’s not. It can simply be triggered by behavior that becomes the addiction. Basically, you can control your behavior, but you can’t fundamentally control your body’s response to that behavior.

Grinspoon points out the misunderstanding about a dopamine fast can lead people to some strange conclusions. For example, social interactions such as a deep conversation can trigger the release of dopamine. (See Why We Feel So Wonderful After A Good Conversation.) But someone who is trying to “fast” from behavior that is healthy and productive — avoiding deep social connection, for instance — is actually avoiding mentally healthy activity. As Grinspoon says, “Human interaction (unless it is somehow compulsive and destructive) is in the category of healthy activities that are supposed to supplant the unhealthy ones, such as surfing social media for hours each day.”

If this sounds like quite a bit of common sense, that’s because it is! Taking a break from technology is simply a modern adaptation of age-old wisdom — in short, good advice. As Grinspoon sums it up, “This idea is noble, healthy, and worthwhile, but it’s certainly not a new concept. Most religions also suggest a rest day (for example, the Jewish Sabbath) or holidays without technological distractions, so that you can reflect and reconnect with family and community, Thousands of years of meditation also suggests that a mindful approach to living reaps many health benefits.”

The feel-good hormones are part of the way our human brains and physiology function. It’s wise to be aware of their function, but also wise not to try to manipulate it.