Sit down to Thanksgiving dinner ready to amaze your companions with physiological facts about why different cuts of the turkey have different characteristics.
Those smiles probably aren’t thanks to tryptophan.
Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock.com
Tryptophan, found in food, is an important ingredient in the neurotransmitter serotonin. But is that enough to support it as a possible mood booster? The research is decidedly mixed.
Christmas dinner time!
Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock
Remember that story about the molecule found in turkey that makes you drowsy? Research shows it’s a myth – tryptophan doesn’t cause you to nod off, but it may be connected to cooperation.
The fate of turkey tails shows how Americans have shifted from eating whole animals to focusing on choice cuts – and the surprising places where unwanted parts end up.
We can give thanks to the strong winds of trans-Atlantic trade for ‘Tom Turkey.’
Reuters/Shannon Stapleton
If I say “Christmas dinner”, perhaps the following image is conjured up: a large table groaning under the weight of roast potatoes, parsnips, peas, Brussels sprouts, a jug of gravy, and in the centre “the…