WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: Does Turkey Really Make You Sleepy?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeartRadio. Hey brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren vogel Bomb here with another classic episode of the podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>In this one, we're talking turkey. Specifically, we're talking about

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<v Speaker 1>its purported property of inducing sleepiness. It turns out that

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<v Speaker 1>it's far from the first culprit in post holiday feast naps.

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<v Speaker 1>Hey brain Stuff, I'm Lauren vogel Bomb, and our question

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<v Speaker 1>of the day is, does turkey really make you sleepy?

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<v Speaker 1>America's favorite holiday bird does have the makings of a

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<v Speaker 1>natural sedative in it an amino acid called tryptofin. Tryptofin

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<v Speaker 1>is an essential amino acid, meaning that you need it,

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<v Speaker 1>but your body can't manufacture it. The body has to

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<v Speaker 1>get tryp to fin and other essential amino acids from food.

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<v Speaker 1>A triptfin helps the body produce the B vitamin nysin,

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<v Speaker 1>which in turn helps you produce serotonin. Serotonin is a

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<v Speaker 1>remarkable chemical that acts as a sort of calming agent

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<v Speaker 1>in the brain and plays a key roll in sleep

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<v Speaker 1>and Tryptofin is also a precursor to another common compound, melatonin.

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<v Speaker 1>So you might think that if you eat a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of turkey, your body would produce more serotonin and melatonin,

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<v Speaker 1>and you would feel calm and maybe more likely to

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<v Speaker 1>fall asleep. But nutritionists and other experts say that the

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<v Speaker 1>tryptofin in Turkey probably won't trigger the body to produce

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<v Speaker 1>more serotonin. Because tryptofin works best on an empty stomach.

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<v Speaker 1>The triyptfin in Thanksgiving Turkey has to vie with all

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<v Speaker 1>of the other amino acids the body takes in in

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<v Speaker 1>order to pass the blood brain barrier and get to work.

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<v Speaker 1>Only part of the tryptofin in a Turkey dinner will

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<v Speaker 1>make it to the brain to help produce serotonin. The

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<v Speaker 1>fact that Thanksgiving meals are often carbohydrate heavy actually does help.

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<v Speaker 1>I think of all the bread stuffings, potatoes, corn, and

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<v Speaker 1>candied tubers covered in marshmallows that we eat before we

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<v Speaker 1>even get to the real desserts. The insulin our bodies

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<v Speaker 1>releases to process all of that also serves as sort

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<v Speaker 1>of ride share vehicles for a lot of amino acids,

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<v Speaker 1>but not for tryptofin, which hitches a ride to the

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<v Speaker 1>brain on a protein called albumin. So with most of

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<v Speaker 1>the competition out of the way, it is in fact

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<v Speaker 1>easier for triptofin to get into our brain and start

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<v Speaker 1>the process that leads to the production of more serotonin. Melatonin, meanwhile,

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<v Speaker 1>is produced outside of the brain, so you don't have

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<v Speaker 1>to worry about that competition at the blood brain barrier,

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<v Speaker 1>but you do have to worry that you have all

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<v Speaker 1>the other compounds necessary for your body to create it. Overall,

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<v Speaker 1>researchers think it's neither the melatonin nor the serotonin produced

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<v Speaker 1>from tryptofin that leads to rampant late afternoon napping on Thanksgiving.

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<v Speaker 1>Most likely it's the whole traditional meal together producing lethargy.

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<v Speaker 1>The average Thanksgiving meal contains three thousand calories, more than

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<v Speaker 1>most of us usually eat in a whole day, and

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<v Speaker 1>your body works hard to digest all that food. After all,

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<v Speaker 1>your nervous system is set up to prime your body

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<v Speaker 1>for maximum nutrient absorption every single time you eat. A

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<v Speaker 1>part of this is called our rest and digest response.

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<v Speaker 1>When we eat, we excrete more saliva and gastric juices,

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<v Speaker 1>and our heart rate and blood pressure lower. Also, our

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<v Speaker 1>bodies are sending more blood to our guts in order

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<v Speaker 1>to help out, meaning that less is available for the

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<v Speaker 1>brain and the skeletal system. All of this can make

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<v Speaker 1>you feel lethargic, limb, heavy and relaxed. Also, if you

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<v Speaker 1>drink alcohol with your dinner, you'll likely feel the sedative

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<v Speaker 1>effect of that as well. But there is a way

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<v Speaker 1>to take advantage of the tryptofin in turkey. If you

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<v Speaker 1>have trouble getting to sleep one night while there's still

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<v Speaker 1>leftover turkey in the fridge, you could have a late

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<v Speaker 1>turkey snack and that nutritionists say might be the right

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<v Speaker 1>amount of tryptofin on an empty stomach to help produce

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<v Speaker 1>some serotonin. Today's episode is based on the article does

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<v Speaker 1>Turkey make You Sleepy? Written partially by me and partially

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<v Speaker 1>by contributors to how stuffworks dot com whose names have

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<v Speaker 1>been lost to the sands of time. If it was

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<v Speaker 1>you right in a brain? Stuff is a production of

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