Turkey is the number one choice for Thanksgiving meals across America, generally served with stuffing, different types of potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy, corn and seasonal vegetables. The meal is often an occasion for over-eating, under the guise of family reunions and the remembrance of blessings or reasons to give thanks over the past year.
Surprisingly enough, the turkey dinner can contribute to good health, providing the pies and desserts are eaten sparingly! It is an excellent source of quality protein, and if eaten with plenty of vegetables to provide dietary fibre, can be the basis of a low fat meal. If you avoid the potatoes and the pies, it can also be a delicious low-carb dinner.
The Insulin Control Effect of Eating Turkey
Turkey meat is a good source of quality protein, containing all the amino acids the human body needs. It is 35 per cent protein, and a 4 ounce (113 grams) serving provides 68 per cent of the recommended daily value.
With no carbohydrates, turkey is naturally very low on the GI (Glycaemic Index) scale. It has recently been included by researchers as one of a group of animal protein foods which help to keep blood insulin after a meal to a safe levels.
Australian researchers Associate Professor Sebely Pal and Research Assistant Vanessa Ellis from the Curtin Health and Research Institute in Perth, Western Australia, compared the effects of four protein meals, whey, tuna, turkey and egg albumin, on postprandial glucose and insulin concentrations as well as on appetite measures and energy intake in twenty-two lean, healthy men.
The men were given the meals as liquids, on different days, and their blood glucose levels measured at 30 minute intervals up to 4 hours after the liquid meal. They were then allowed to eat as much as they liked from a buffet lunch.
Turkey was one of the four protein meals that caused a lowered blood insulin response and sense of satiety, which the researchers suggested had potential for appetite suppression and weight loss in overweight or obese individuals.
The research was published as ‘The acute effects of four protein meals on insulin, glucose, appetite and energy intake in lean men’ in the October 2010 edition of the British Journal of Nutrition.
Turkey is Low in Fat and Saturated Fat
One of the great advantages of turkey is that much of the fat can be easily removed, making it a very lean source of protein. A 4 ounce (113 grams) serving of roast turkey provides 153 calories, of which only 7.5 are from fat, and only 2.45 of those are from saturated fat.
Roasting is considered the best way to cook the bird to keep it moist and bring out is best flavor. However, there are many delicious recipes using turkey, so you don't have to stick with a roast each time. The important point is that the meat dries out quickly, so avoid overcooking it. However, to avoid the risk of food poisoning from Campylobacter and Salmonella bacteria, it is also important not to undercook it.
Turkey White Meat Reduces Risk of Colon Cancer
One of the little considered benefits of eating turkey (and other poultry) is that eating more white meat and less red meat reduces the risk of developing cancer, particularly colon cancer. This because of the difference in chemical makeup between red meat such as beef and lamb, and white meat.
In particular, researchers have suggested the formation of carcinogenic N-nitroso compounds in the large intestine is much more likely to occur from eating large amounts of red meats than from a high consumption of white meats. Since excessive formation of these N-nitroso compounds is associated with increased risk of colon cancer, replacing red meats with white meats would reduce this risk.
Tryptophan in Turkey Can help You Sleep
It might not be just the large amount of food you’ve eaten that makes you feel sleepy after a Thanksgiving meal. Turkey is one of the top ten good mood foods, thanks to one of its amino acids, tryptophan. The hormone melanin, which helps to regulate sleep and waking is made from tryptophan in the pineal gland.
Tryptophan is also one of the basic ingredients the body needs to make serotonin, known as the ‘feel good’ hormone, so eating turkey regularly – not just at Thanksgiving – can help to make you feel more relaxed.
Avoid Turkey if You’re Prone to Gout
Unfortunately, some people might be wise to steer clear of a turkey dinner. For sufferers of gout, turkey is a meat to avoid, or to minimise the number of turkey meals. Purines, naturally occurring substances commonly found in plants, animals, and humans, can cause unpleasant reactions in susceptible people. For people who are prone to purine-related problems, especially gout. excessive intake of purine-containing foods can cause health problems.
Purines can be broken down through digestion and metabolism to form uric acid. Excess accumulation of purines in the body can lead to excess accumulation of uric acid, which as gout sufferers know, can cause acute pain in the affected joint.
You might also be interested in Don’t Let Food Poisoning Spoil Your Thanksgiving, The Top Five Healthy Festive Foods and The Top Ten Good Mood Foods.
Sue Cartledge - I'm a science, health, nutrition and lifestyle journalist, fascinated by the way the physical world operates in all its forms, and how ...
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