tryptophan

[anthrax]

the amino acid tryptophan helps fall asleep

in what food can I find high levels of tryptophan ?

 

[gymtime]

Turkey meat is one of the highest.

 

[anthrax]

Thx

and would it have any effect (eating Turkey ) on sleepiness ?

 

[gymtime]

I suppose it would, initially at least. Turkey is also a good diet food. However, if you were to start eating it in the evenings as a way to help you sleep, I don't know if or when your body would eventually adjust to it.

 

[diamonddiceclay]

you'd have to eat alot of turkey to get help sleeping-you also cannot take tryptophan and certain mental health meds together

 

[_jaap_]

tryptophan helps make you sleepy because it is an precursor for melatonine. The hormone which controls your biological clock. When it get dark your brain starts to produce a lot more melatonine and with this come the effects which are related to sleepyness.

But the concentrations of trytophan found in food are no were near enought to have a profound effect on melatonine levels in the brain. Even if you could ingest enough trytophan to have an effect on melatonine, i dont think you would want to. As there have been studies on this and the quality of sleep was severly lowered, peopl actually woke up every 2-3 hours and had bad nightmares.

The droozyness attribute to eating a large turkey dinner, which for americans happens a lot at festivities like thanksgiving is imho more related to the insuline action then to tryptohan.

Anywayz, my bs .02