Hello and happy almost Thanksgiving everyone! Personally, Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday. It is a day all about spending time with those you love and reflecting on everything you have to be thankful for in life. Now I know this year has been difficult for everyone, and Thanksgiving this year is going to look vastly different than the celebrations we are used to, but the heart of the holiday is still the same. Even amongst all of the struggles this year has presented us with, there is always something to be grateful for. Since Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, I wanted this week’s post to fit in with the Thanksgiving theme. Today we are tackling the popular “Turkey Coma” myth. Is there something about turkey that really makes us all so sleepy we have to collectively take a two hour nap after our Thanksgiving feast? Let’s find out.
We’ve all been there. We’ve piled our plates with turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, stuffing, the works, stuffed our faces until we felt we would explode, only to curl up on the couch, football game on in the background, dozing off for our post-feast nap. As we all know, the turkey is obviously the culprit for why we are all so sleepy...or is it? Long story short, we have been framing the wrong suspect for years! It is understandable why some people would think it was the turkey to blame, though. An amino acid called tryptophan is found in turkey, as well as other protein-rich foods. Our bodies cannot produce tryptophan, so we must get it from the foods we eat. It is a very important part of the process of producing serotonin. Serotonin is a chemical found in the brain that promotes a feeling of well-being and relaxation as well as assisting in the production of melatonin. If you remember from our “Sleeping Our Lives Away” post, melatonin is a chemical that makes us feel sleepy and helps regulate our sleep cycles.
It stands to reason that if we consume a large amount of turkey, we would also be consuming a large amount of tryptophan. It would only make sense that we would get sleepier, right? Well, turns out that it isn’t actually that simple. Just because we are consuming tryptophan doesn’t mean our body is transforming all of it into serotonin. In order to make its way from our bloodstream to our brains to be made into serotonin, tryptophan must hop aboard a specialized protein transport. Now, along with tryptophan, many other amino acids are also present in the bloodstream and trying to make their way across the blood-brain barrier, making things all a bit crowded. It also doesn’t help that tryptophan can only use one special type of transporter, which it has to share with five other amino acids. This means it is very difficult for the tryptophan to make its way into the brain. Studies have shown that even when a large amount of tryptophan is consumed, there isn’t a significant increase in serotonin levels in the body.
So, who IS responsible for making an entire nation extra sleepy on Thanksgiving? As it turns out, there are a couple. The biggest one may actually be all the carbohydrates; the rolls, potatoes, stuffing, and pies. Consuming carbohydrates triggers the release of a hormone called insulin which promotes the uptake of glucose and amino acids into tissues. Insulin, however, does not work on tryptophan. This means that insulin has removed most of tryptophan’s competition when it comes to hopping on a protein transport, so it is more likely to make it across the blood-brain barrier to be transformed into serotonin and then on into melatonin.
The second culprit all comes down to blood flow. As you eat a large meal, your stomach goes to work trying to digest it all. Digestion, especially of a large meal, takes a lot of energy. As the food hits your stomach, and your stomach starts to break it all down, more blood is sent to your digestive tract to help support the extra work, leaving lower blood levels in your brain. All of this together induces a feeling of sleepiness.
Well, there you have it, turkey isn’t the coma-inducing fiend we all thought it was. Turns out it’s a combination of all of the delicious little treats we indulge ourselves with. Were you surprised? I hope you all have a very happy Thanksgiving this year, even if it is a little weird. What is one thing you are thankful for this year? I am thankful for all of you who read and support The Friendly Neighborhood Shark Lady and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for all of us. Thank you so much for coming and learning with me. I’ll see you all Friday for Finn Friday!
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