GLP-1 weight-loss drugs alter brain circuits in the amygdala and dopamine system to reduce the motivation to seek out high-calorie foods.

Positive thinking may boost the body’s defenses against disease. Increasing activity in a brain region that controls motivation and expectation, specifically the brain’s reward system, is linked with ...

Stimulating the brain's self-control center via rTMS reduces smoking by 11 cigarettes a day, outperforming reward-suppression ...

We have long been told a simple story about reward: Dopamine is the "wanting" molecule that drives us toward goals, and opioids are the "liking" molecules that provide the hit of pleasure once we get ...

For many people who smoke, quitting is not just a matter of willpower. It is a tug-of-war in the brain – between the pull of ...

Some people bounce back from trauma, but others get caught in depressive loops that sap the joy from their lives. Now, scientists at UC San Francisco are learning how the brain creates these divergent ...

I was a third-year medical student at Northwestern on my ICU rotation the first time I saw a dopamine drip. The patient was pale and motionless, his blood pressure dropping by the minute despite large ...

When faced with multiple food options and ultimately choosing one, the factors of that decision-making process may be more physiological than previously assumed. A group of scientists led by ...