Turkey Is Nutritious!

You don't have to break your diet to enjoy Thanksgiving. Just watch your portions. 2-3 ounces of turkey is a healthy source of necessary vitamins and minerals, as well as protein.

Roast turkey. CC2.0 license. Source

Turkey, like other types of meat, contains protein, which is a necessary component of a balanced diet, along with fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. Turkey also contains fats, vitamins, and minerals recommended for daily dietary intake. Like most things, though, moderation is key. For calorie conscious eaters, the skinless breast is the least worrisome of all the bird’s parts.

Vitamins and minerals in turkey

A single serving of turkey is considered to be 2 to 3 ounces, and 2 to 3 servings of meat is recommended per day. In this portion is iron, zinc, phosphorous, potassium, and B vitamins. Iron is important for the transport of oxygen by red blood cells. A deficiency of iron can result in anemia. Zinc is important for immune function, reproductive function, and is a component of many cellular proteins. Phosphorous is important for cellular metabolism and energy use. Potassium is important for blood pressure regulation. B vitamins are important for the immune system and have roles in cellular metabolism.

The caloric composition of turkey

The portions of the turkey with the least amount of calories are the breast and the dark meat without skin. Protein, fat (both saturated and unsaturated), and carbohydrates (or sugars) make up the caloric, or energy producing, composition of a food. Each gram of fat is 9 cal, protein is 4 cal, and carbohydrates is 3 cal. There are no carbohydrates in unprocessed turkey based on several sources, including the USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory. Turkey contains more protein than the same size serving of chicken or beefsteak.

A single serving of turkey breast without skin contains approximately 160 calories from 30 grams of protein and 4 grams of fat; very little of this is saturated fat (less than a half gram). Breast with skin has about 30 more calories because there is less protein and twice as much fat. Dark meat without skin is similar to breast with skin. Fresh roasted turkey is also relatively low in sodium, containing less than 50 mg per 3 ounce serving.

A healthy Thanksgiving meal

It is known that many people gorge during the holidays, putting their diets and shame aside. This can lead to guilt, self-anger, and even sleepiness. The simple act of having a traditional turkey does not have to result in bad habits or feelings. When eaten with sensible side dishes, or moderate portions of once-a-year favorites, the Thanksgiving turkey can be enjoyable and not ruin your diet.

21st century plague?

The days of flea-infested rats spreading disease are not behind us in the Middle Ages. A new bacterium discovered in the past two decades may be taking up the mantle of “Plague” as it destroys hearts.

Twenty strains of Bartonella bacteria have been discovered since the early 1990s, though a strain that is the prime suspect in prosthetic heart valve infections was first described during World War I, according to the Centers for Disease Control, and was the suspected cause of 1 million cases of “trench fever”.

Bartonella primarily target the heart, causing a damaging infection called endocarditis. Vegetations grow in the heart muscle causing valve dysfunction, decreased or strained pumping, and interrupted blood flow. It is a serious, and once relatively rare, heart disease caused most often by systemic infections with Staphylococcus aureus, the instigator of severe skin wound infections.

The strains appear to be carried by rodents, and of particular interest is the brown rat, the biggest and most common in Europe. Scientists are still evaluating the route of transmission, but studies so far indicate fleas to be the culprits, much like the Black Plague of Medieval Europe, which involved the transmission of the bacterium Yersinia pestis.

Bartonella strains can also infect the spleen and nervous system. A traveler to South America was unfortunate enough to provide a sample of the spleen infecting strain. But it is not only a European, South American, or travelers’ problem: The bacteria have also been found in patients in the United States and rats in Taiwan, indicating that a global problem is afoot.

The latest study finding the bacteria in several types of rodents and fleas is available in the December issue of Journal of Medical Microbiology.

Does tryptophan make you sleepy?

Thanksgiving dinner. Ms Jones, CC2.0 license

The tryptophan in turkey is often thought to cause post-holiday drowsiness. This is not true, though the meal does have something to do with it.

Turkey, like many other foods, contains protein. When protein is eaten, the body breaks it down into its components, called amino acids. Tryptophan is one of the amino acids in turkey. One of twenty amino acids, tryptophan is an essential amino acid meaning it is only taken in from the diet and not made by the body. L-tryptophan, the variation of the amino acid which is ingested, is used by the human body to produce the B-vitamin niacin. Niacin, in turn, is used to produce serotonin, a brain chemical that calms a person into sleep.

The myth about tryptophan

It is a common misconception that the tryptophan in turkey makes everyone sleepy after the Thanksgiving meal. Although tryptophan may play a chemical role in helping one nod off, it has this effect more prominently on an empty stomach when there are no other amino acids with which to compete. In truth, only a portion of the tryptophan from the turkey makes it to the brain to produce serotonin. Also, it takes larger quantities of tryptophan than what is present in the average serving of turkey to induce serotonin production to an extent as to cause sleep.

Tryptophan is also found in dairy products, fish, tofu, eggs, some seeds, nuts, and peanut butter. It would be reasonable to assume that eating a meal with any of these would make one sleepy just as turkey supposedly does, but they don't. Often dairy products and eggs are eaten for breakfast, a time when a person does not want to sleep. One more example disproving that turkey is what causes relatives to neglect the dishes in the sink on Thanksgiving.

The truth about the post-meal nap

Large quantities of food, particularly foods high in simple sugars and starches such as those found in a typical Thanksgiving meal, cause the drowsiness associated with holiday napping. The increase in blood sugar causes the body to release insulin. As the body quickly removes the sugar and the level in the blood drops, the body exhibits hypoglycemic symptoms such as drowsiness. This peak and fall is common with simple sugars and they are therefore avoided by runners or athletes the morning of a race or match. Pulling blood away from the brain to aid in digestion induces drowsiness also.

Alcohol consumption has its own sedative effect. This in combination with the bread, stuffing, turkey, potatoes, whipped cream, pie, carrots, or cranberries can make a nap seem like a good idea. It has been estimated that the typical Thanksgiving meal has 3000 calories.

Alternatives to avoid drowsiness

The best advice for avoiding an after meal doze on Thursday is to not pig out. Eat a little bit of everything, but not a lot of it all. To stop your blood sugar from plummeting, eat incrementally, a couple of little snacking meals rather than one large one. Another thing you can do is to have a cup of coffee or tea, caffeine helps offset the sedative affect. Also, limit alcohol and dessert consumption. Most importantly, a person could eat a balanced meal with steamed or fresh vegetables and lean protein; or just schedule in a nap.