Don't Let The Turkeys Get You Down! Because They Can't!
Don't Let The Turkeys Get You Down! Because They Can't!
A parent just asked me "Since you're the nutrition guru, w/ NV and all, I thought I'd pose this question to you and see what you think. My son has some bad temper tantrums. Do you think nutrition has anything to do with it? Like what he eats on a daily basis? I ask this because one day he's a perfect angel then the next he's a hellion! He's apraxic, minor SPD, speech 2xs/wk, OT 1x/wk. Any and all info/opinions are wanted!!!"
I'm not a nutrition guru, but I suspect the answer lies in the neurotransmitters. Research typically states that if one wants to be more alert you should look to increase the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine, while if you are looking for calm, stress reducing effects you want to increase serotonin production. There are various foods that will naturally raise the production of neurotransmitters including NV as Dr. Tom writes.
Perhaps I could find information to help that is timely with the Thanksgiving Holiday. Thinking turkey would be a great example of a food that would naturally relax one as (I thought) it's high in tryptophan and helps boost the neurotransmitter serotonin; I searched Google and found a fun blog Turkey Doesn't Make You Tired: The Myth of the Post-Thanksgiving Crash' where the author writes:
"The myth goes that the bird contains a high level of the amino acid tryptophan. Tryptophan does not get taken into the cells, but rather stays in the bloodstream and travels to the brain, where it boosts levels of serotonin.
Serotonin is involved in the regulation of sleep. But, turkey doesn't actually have a high level of tryptophan it's on par with other foods like chicken, beef, soybeans, and sunflower and sesame seeds. And the levels that it does contain are not high enough to translate into a nap. You'd need a direct shot of tryptophan on an empty stomach (remember, this is thanksgiving we're talking about)."
So being investigative as I am, I wanted to double check this as again I too believed that turkey relaxed the body. I checked Google again and found
http://blogs.babble.com/strollerderby/2010/11/24/the-myth-of-the-turkey-crash-tryptophan-and-thanksgiving-dinner/
Tryptophan: Turkey's Sedative? http://www.healthnews.com/nutrition-diet/tryptophan-turkeys-sedative-4569.html
Ha! Perhaps this article provided another point of view? I read on:
"Turkey is one of the common food items that provide an ample amount of tryptophan, along with chicken, milk, cheese, eggs, fish, soy, tofu, and peanuts. While turkey does have the making of a natural sedative, it is unlikely that the "calm, want a nap" feeling you have on Thanksgiving Day can be blamed on turkey alone. Nutritionists say that tryptophan actually works best on an empty stomach and only a portion of the tryptophan from the turkey actually makes it to the brain to help produce serotonin. It is, in reality, a combination of the type of food, amount of food, and celebratory atmosphere of Thanksgiving Day that gives you that comfortable feeling."
So my next search was to see what doctors had to say about this. I checked Dr. Sears and found an article called "Foods for Sleep" and I was sure I would find turkey there. Interestingly enough some common breakfast foods made it onto the list of Dr. Sears' "Snooze Foods" list, and poultry isn't even in the top three!
SNOOZE FOODS
These are foods high in the sleep-inducing amino acid tryptophan:
Dairy products: cottage cheese, cheese, milk
Soy products: soy milk, tofu, soybean nuts
Seafood
Meats
Poultry
Whole grains
Beans
Rice
Hummus
Lentils
Hazelnuts, Peanuts
Eggs
Sesame seeds, sunflower seeds
And a very popular breakfast meal was almost the top "Best Dinners For Sleep"
pasta with parmesan cheese
scrambled eggs and cheese
My last place to look was one of my most trusted; an NIH website. Here I found a list of the top foods for tryptophan and turkey was listed as clear as dayat the bottom of the list -below cheese, chicken and eggs (the top three!)
Tryptophan can be found in:
Cheese
Chicken
Eggs
Fish
Milk
Nuts
Peanut butter
Peanuts
Pumpkin seeds
Sesame seeds
Soy
Tofu
Turkey
So it seems the expression should be changed from "Don't let the turkeys get you down" to "Don't let breakfast get you down"
For more information, visit: http://wholefoodtherapy.com
Exploring Your Fortune in Bingo Htc Gratia Deals With Amazing Offers To Attract Young Crowd Should You Use URL Shorteners? The fragrence of Achievements with Achievers Guide! Ardyss International Hot Ginger Water 12 Hours Good Thing Governance Problems MPB Today Leads Tackle Corruption Of Word File Effectively What Does Oil Drilling Entail? Use Rubber Wristbands To Display Your Belief P90X Workout Program Borderx A Leap Into The World Of Mountaineering Natural Methods For Getting Rid of Heartburn