It’s Thanksgiving Day!
Every year, we hear the same folk tale that “turkey makes you happy and sleepy!” There is a small dose of truth to that, but the real story goes a little something like this… Tryptophan is an essential amino acid (a building block of muscle) that’s converted into serotonin. Serotonin is what we all refer to as the “feel good” hormone. So, we eat turkey, and turkey makes us happy, right? Well, not quite!
Here’s the part of the story everyone misses. Turkey is high in protein, and protein actually blocks the synthesis of tryptophan into serotonin. What?! But how do we explain the food-induced coma?!
The truth revealed!
Enter the real hero of the day, carbs. Oh yea! The trick to getting your tryptophan is to eat carbohydrates alone with no protein at some point of your meal. This allows tryptophan to enter your brain and boost those serotonin levels.
Although turkey does indeed have tryptophan, it does not contain a high amount. There are a handful of relatively low-protein, tryptophan-rich foods that you can include in your diet – like spinach and other green leafy vegetables, sea vegetables, soybeans, asparagus, cauliflower, and sunflower or sesame seeds. Check out this list of foods high in tryptophan!
So, what’s the moral of the story?
Have yourself a guilt-free, carb-loving Turkey Day. But more importantly, thank your loved ones for that happy trip you’re on.
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