MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why does turkey make us so sleepy?

Vector Illustration of a turkey stuffed on Thanksgiving.

MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why does turkey make us so sleepy?

It’s going to happen to all of us on Thursday right around an hour after your second helping of turkey. Eyes start to get heavy, the couch gets a little more comfy, the traditional post-meal nap! All thanks to turkey. But why?

Turkey contains something called L-tryptophan. Which is an amino acid linked with sleep. It encourages serotonin production in your brain that in turn makes you feel relaxed and sleepy.

While turkey has a ton of L-tryptophan, it’s not the only food that has it. Any high-protein food you eat on a regular basis, like other meats, cheese, nuts can have the same effect. So any of those Thanksgiving cheese boards could be the culprit too.

Happy napping!

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