The Inside Scoop On Turkeys!

All About Turkeys!

Did you know?

• Wild turkeys can fly, but domestic turkeys cannot.
• Turkeys can run up to 20 MPH.
• The long, loose skin that hangs down on a turkey’s neck is called a “wattle.”
• The wild turkey is a native bird of North America. Benjamin Franklin wanted to make turkeys the national bird instead of the bald eagles because he thought they were “more respectable” than eagles.

Although there very well may not have been any turkey at the first Thanksgiving, it’s become a staple in most households today. Most likely it was deer that graced the first Thanksgiving table.

Turkeys are native American birds that are now bred in huge commercial operations.

Rumor has it that founding father, Alexander Hamilton, commented at an early 19th century Thanksgiving feast that, “No citizen of the US shall refrain from turkey on Thanksgiving Day.” It seems his proclamation has come true in our country today.

Pardoned.

Each Thanksgiving, the President ‘pardons’ a turkey sending it to a farm where it lives out the rest of its days without fear of being served up on a Thanksgiving feast.

According to the White House, the tradition of pardoning a turkey dates back to President Lincoln when his son Tad asked him to spare for the bird meant for the Lincoln’s family Christmas table.

Don’t Blame The Bird.

You will likely join most of America in a post-meal nap due to fatigue after your Thanksgiving meal.

It’s not the commonly held belief that it’s due to the amino acid tryptophan in turkey. Although tryptophan is a melatonin pre-cursor, it’s not found in any real significant quantity in turkey.

Why You’re Tired After Your Big Thanksgiving Meal.

It’s the massive amount of carbs from the dressing, rolls, corn, cranberry sauce, sweat potatoes, pie, cokes and other drinks that lead you to sleeping through the football games after eating.

Many people consume 400+ grams of sugars (carbs) or so during their traditional Thankgiving meal. You can measure it’s effect yourself by taking a blood sugar measurement with one of the cheap in home testing kits 45 minutes after you eat.

In general, the higher your blood sugar the greater the damage that is occuring to every single part of your body ranging from simply pain/inflammation to heart, brain, kidneys, liver, gut, … you name it, it’s being damaged and some of the damage is not reversible.

Although the reason you sleep through the Detroit Lions early game may very well be from the tedious task of watching the Lions lose another football game, it’s likely the pre-game meal may also has a lot to do with it.