Thanksgiving Snoozing

Thanksgiving Snoozing November 26, 2015

Rachel Feltman:

And finally, everyone’s favorite Thanksgiving feast side effect: snoozing.

You might think that your post-turkey nap is caused by the bird itself, but this is actually just a myth. It’s true that turkey meat contains tryptophan, an amino acid that the body uses to produce serotonin — a neurotransmitter that helps regulate sleep. But so do other foods. Cheddar cheese actually has more tryptophan than turkey does, and you don’t conk out every time you eat grilled cheese (I hope).

The real culprit is the overeating. When you eat a ton of carbs (stuffing, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes all at once will do the trick), your body releases extra insulin to keep your blood sugar in check. From LiveScience:

The massive intake of carb-heavy calories stimulates the release of insulin, which in turn triggers the uptake of most amino acids from the blood into the muscles except for tryptophan.

With other amino acids swept out of the bloodstream, tryptophan — from turkey or ham or any meat or cheese, for that matter — can better make its way to the brain to produce serotonin. Without that insulin surge, tryptophan would have to compete with all the other kinds of amino acids in the big meal as they make their way to the brain via a common chemical transport route.

So don’t blame your basted bird: Blame all the side dishes you ate with it. And consider pausing before you dive into dessert.


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