The Sleep's about the Tryptophan!

Tryptophan; found in poultry, fish and soy beans.  An important, critical amino acid found in the foods we eat and because it is only found in the foods we eat.  The human body makes or assembles many amino acids by producing chains of atoms, but of the 20 amino acids the human body requires, it can only make half of them.  The rest, you guessed it, comes from the food we eat. Tryptophan is one amino acid that the body cannot make on its own. Tryptophan is worth a significant look because it directly corresponds with a balanced appetite, happiness and sleep~

We have all heard Thanksgiving dinner makes us tired because of the tryptophan in the turkey.  Well, to tell you the truth, we get tired because we eat all day and when we stop eating, and moving, all of our blood is circulating so vigorously in order to digest, absorb, and deliver the ingested goodness that we succumb to sleep. Tryptophan itself doesn't make us tired.  What does cause sleepiness?  Melatonin.  What is Melatonin made of?  Serotonin.  Where do we get Serotonin?  Tryptophan~   

Lets say we just ate a chicken breast over an edemame salad.  These food choices are loaded up with tryptophan.  Tryptophan, unlike B and C vitamins, are not affected by heat so it remains intact after cooking its host.  We absorb tryptophan in the intestines and it is there transformed into serotonin.  Serotonin is also produced in the base of the brain in the same way; tryptophan is converted into 5-hydroxy L-Tryptophan, or 5-HTP, and then 5-HTP is, in turn, converted into Serotonin.  As the sun nears the earth our hormones switch which causes serotonin to convert to melatonin.  This conversion causes us to feel tired which lends to sleep, beautiful sleep.

Seems easy, right?  Eat tryptophan, make serotonin which is converted to melatonin, enjoy sleep and awake rested!  Not so fast, turkey.  In order for tryptophan to be effective in the body, better said, in order for our bodies to effectively utilize tryptophan, we need ample supplies of riboflavin (B2), vitamin B6 (pyridoxal phosphate or PLP), and iron.  Again, a symbiosis of nutrients.  The body also needs vitamin C in order for all of the chemical changes to take place without mutation.  Remember, vitamin C is heat sensitive, so plug in a vitamin, eat an orange, or have some salsa.  Or, have a grilled chicken breast with an edamame salad and mango salsa aside brown rice!

We don't eat the same foods everyday.  If today we are fortified with vitamin C and tryptophan, tomorrow we may be high on B6 and low on C with Tryptophan absent.  We cannot take a tryptophan supplement, but we can take supplements for all other things tryptophan needs to be accompanied by; they are most always found in a multivitamin.  So, eat real foods!  Give your vitamins their vitamins!  Drink water so all can be absorbed!  And remember to wash your hands.

Anna~

Tryptophan is found in red meat, fish, shellfish, nuts, seeds, soy, legumes and poultry.