Top Highlights

• Ironically, eating a protein-rich meal lowers brain tryptophan and serotonin levels, and eating a carbohydrate-rich snack has the opposite effects. Tryptophan is a large amino acid that shares an entry gate into the brain with several other large amino acids, such as tyrosine. When you eat a protein-rich meal, you flood the blood with both tryptoph...
• In contrast, a carbohydrate-rich meal triggers the release of insulin from the pancreas. This hormone causes most amino acids floating in the blood to be absorbed into the body’s (not the brain’s) cells—all, that is, except tryptophan, which remains in the bloodstream at relatively high levels. With the competition removed, tryptophan can freely en...
• no one neurotransmitter works alone, but rather each works in concert with numerous other neurotransmitters, hormones, and chemicals in the delicate and complicated task of regulating our eating. Tampering with only one or two of the players in that concert is likely to have an unforeseen cascade effect on other chemicals instead of directly influe...
• Interestingly, some studies show that carbohydrates elevate serotonin levels, but fail to show any connection with mood as a result. It might be that a certain degree of carbohydrate sensitivity is needed before symptoms are obvious enough to be measured in a scientific study. However, it could be that there is more to the food-mood link than just ...