Daily Life Biochemistry

Topics to be covered:
•Why heavy meal makes you feel tired?
•How weather regulates the rate of
reproduction in animals?
• Why eating makes you tired
– high levels of sugar and refined
carbohydrates.
– Eating these types of foods
causes a rise in blood sugar
levels, followed by a drop, which
results in low energy levels.
– Excessive secretion of insulin,
which is the body's way of trying
to balance blood sugar levels,
causes tryptophan to move into
the brain, where it is metabolised
into serotonin and melatonin.
– These neurotransmitters have a
calming effect and help regulate
sleep. To help balance blood
sugar and insulin levels, choose
natural foods that are high in
fibre and protein such as
wholegrains, legumes and nuts.
• Meal rich in carbohydrates triggers release of insulin.
• Insulin in turn stimulates the uptake of large neutral branched-chain amino
acids (BCAA), but not tryptophan (an aromatic amino acid) into muscle.
• increasing the ratio of tryptophan to BCAA in the blood stream. The resulting
increased ratio of tryptophan to BCAA in the blood reduces competition at
the large neutral amino acid transporter (which transports both BCAA and
aromatic amino acids), resulting in the uptake of tryptophan across the blood–
brain barrier into the cerebrospinal fluid.
• Once in the CSF, tryptophan is converted into serotonin by the normal
enzymatic pathway. The resultant serotonin is further metabolised
into melatonin by the pineal gland.
• Hence, this data suggests that "feast-induced drowsiness"—
or postprandial somnolence — may be the result of a heavy meal
rich in carbohydrates, which, via an indirect mechanism, increases
the production of sleep-promoting melatonin in the brain.