If you're anything like me, you are one of the 47 million Americans, of which 1 in 5 are women, who suffer from migraines. Some of us have them a few times a year, while the less fortunate ones suffer from them weekly or even several times a month.
Symptoms of migraines can be sudden onset of throbbing head pain, auras that affect your vision, constipation, frequent urination, and a stiff neck. However, every migraine sufferer can have different experiences. My most recent migraine put me in the hospital with stroke-like symptoms and lasted two weeks.
Multiple suspected causes of migraines exist, from genetics and lifestyle choices to hormones and the food we eat. This article will focus on the food and beverages known or suspected to trigger migraines.
Tips On How to Curbtail Migraines
Before diving into the list of suspects, I wanted to provide some tips regarding migraine tracking, food elimination, and specific compounds that are possible culprits, such as nitrates.
Keep a Daily Food Log
If you suspect certain foods or beverages are causing your migraines, it's wise to begin tracking them in a daily food log. If there is a pattern, remove that item from your diet for at least four weeks and see if there is any improvement.
If you don't have a migraine during those four weeks, you most likely found your trigger(s). What a relief!
Be Careful With Exercise
Everyone benefits from regular physical activity. It's a known aspect of being healthy, but it can trigger headaches for some people. If you get a migraine from exercise, you can still work out, but it's necessary to ask your doctor what would help.
Reduce Stress
There are many ways to manage stress. You could exercise, meditate, pray, spend time with loved ones, or engage in activities you enjoy. Create a plan to address the sources of your tension. Counseling and stress management classes can also be helpful. Additionally, consider biofeedback, which teaches you how to control physiological responses like heart rate and breathing to reduce stress.
Get Enough Sleep
It’s vital to get enough sleep to avoid migraines. If your sleep habits are thrown off or you're very tired, that can make a migraine more likely to happen.
Food and Beverages to Avoid
Now, onto the main event. Everyone is different when it comes to food triggers. Maybe for you, it’s red wine and not all alcohol, or it’s milk chocolate, and dark chocolate is fine. Whatever the case may be, here are the following items that migraine specialists believe can be migraine triggers.
Alcohol
Alcohol, especially red wine, and certain beers, are known culprits to cause the onset of a migraine. The tannins, histamines, and quercetin found in red wine are linked to causing headaches. Yeast is a common ingredient in beer making; unfortunately, yeast consumption is related to headaches.
However, by being cautious with these triggers, you can potentially reduce the occurrence of migraines, offering a sense of hope and empowerment.
Aged Cheeses
Many items on this list contain the compound tyramine, a chemical formed when the amino acid tyrosine breaks down during food preservation or aging. Aged cheeses such as brie and Parmesan contain Tyramine.
It’s best to steer clear or, at the very least, reduce your intake of these particular cheeses. By being self-aware and managing your diet, you can take control of your migraines.
Smoked Fish
Smoked fish can trigger migraines due to its high tyramine content. Tyramine interacts with neurotransmitters and can cause migraines, particularly in individuals with low monoamine oxidase (MAO), the enzyme that breaks down monoamines. The longer a food is pickled or aged, the higher its tyramine levels.
Soy Products
Like aged cheese and smoked fish, soy products such as soy sauce, tempeh, and miso can all trigger migraines. Please proceed with caution when ingesting them.
Caffeinated Drinks
Consumption of beverages such as coffee, tea, soda, and other drinks containing high levels of caffeine has the potential to trigger migraines and negatively impact your health.
Processed Meats
Processed meats like hotdogs, bacon, and pepperoni should be treated cautiously and consumed infrequently. These products contain high levels of nitrates, which can trigger migraines by causing blood vessels in the brain and scalp to dilate.
This occurs when nitrates in food are efficiently broken down by bacteria in the mouth and upper throat, converting them into nitric oxide in the bloodstream. Nitric oxide is linked to headaches, and studies have found that people with migraines often have higher levels of these bacteria compared to those without migraines.
Breads & Pastries
Bread and other baked goods with yeast, such as sourdough bread, bagels, doughnuts, and coffee cake, can all trigger migraines. If you're anything like me, cutting baked goods from your diet might be challenging; however, you can significantly reduce your intake or choose gluten-free products.
Cultured Dairy
Yogurt and kefir are cultured dairy that can also trigger a headache. The reason? Tyramines. Once again, this nasty little compound is found in so many beloved foods.
However, it's best to know beforehand to make reasonable decisions regarding which foods to consume.
Nuts & Certain Seeds
Addicted to almond butter? Here's some bad news: almonds, peanuts, and many other nuts and seeds contain tyramine, and by now, we know what that means.
However, not all migraine sufferers are sensitive to nuts, so figuring out if you are may require some trial and error. Only almonds affect me negatively, so I enjoy cashews and walnuts instead.
Sauerkraut
Suerkraut is a fermented aged cabbage. Due to the compounds that go into the fermenting process, you once again have a food that can cause headaches. Luckily for me, I don't eat sauerkraut too frequently, but it's still a disappointment.
Raw Onions
Raw onions are unsuitable, but you should be safe with cooked ones. Consuming them raw releases histamines that have been linked to headaches. Unfortunately, few scientific studies have presented conclusive evidence.
However, many migraine sufferers commonly report raw onions as a food trigger, leading to the reasonable conclusion that they may cause headaches.
A Few More Potential Triggers
I apologize for taking the fun out of eating all of your favorite foods. It's important to note that the Cleveland Clinic also recommends avoiding these foods when possible: avocados, organ meats, dried fruits, garlic, most beans, potato chips, bananas, and tomato-based products (including pizza).
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