After everyone gorges themselves on their Thanksgiving mega-meals today, they’ll loaf around and complain about how tired they feel. Inevitably, someone will try to sound smart and chime in that the tryptophan in the turkey is to blame for the lethargy. That gives you the opportunity to sound smarter by saying “Nope, it’s actually the carbs.”

According to the L.A. Times, the American Chemical Society says turkey’s tryptophan levels are lower than that of chicken and not high enough to cause drowsiness. The organization says it’s carb overload that tends to slow down overeaters, causing the body to pump blood to the stomach, leaving the rest of you as a hapless football-watching lump of lazy.

Here’s a video that explains the theory:

Thanksgiving: Busting the tryptophan myth wide open [L.A. Times]

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