June is National Migraine Awareness Month. Avoid these 8 foods to decrease your susceptibility to migraines.
June is National Migraine Awareness Month. Avoid these 8 foods to decrease your susceptibility to migraines.
June is National Migraine Awareness Month. Luckily, I’ve only suffered from a few migraines in my life, but each time I did, the experience was debilitating. Unfortunately, 1 in every 4 U.S. households includes someone who has migraines, according to the Migraine Research Foundation. Migraines affect women more than men, with 18% of American women reporting suffering from migraines compared to 6% of men—and migraines occur most often in people aged 25 to 55. If you broaden that category to also include headaches, then more than 47% of the population is affected.
One of the keys to migraine and headache awareness is to discover any possible personal triggers so you can avoid them. Sensitiveness to light and sound can often trigger headaches, but for some people the trigger starts within—with the food they eat. Here are 8 of the most common foods that trigger headaches and migraines.
1. Aged cheese — The culprit may be a substance call tyramine, which forms in aged cheeses as the proteins break down over time. If you suffer from frequent headaches, you may want to consider cutting back on aged cheeses, such as Gouda, Parmesan, blue cheese, and aged Cheddars.
2. Alcohol — Alcohol causes increased blood flow to your brain, which could result in dehydration and trigger a headache. Some headache sufferers are especially sensitive to red wine, which contains sulfites as a preservative.
3. Bananas — Though rare, bananas could trigger migraines in people who are sensitive to tyramine, the same trigger substance found in aged cheese.
4. Caffeine — It’s not the caffeine itself, but more the withdrawal from caffeine that can cause a headache, especially if you’re used to drinking caffeine every day. If you skip caffeine for a day and notice a headache coming on, a little caffeine can help ward off the pain. In fact, some migraine medications contain caffeine. However, if you’re experiencing a migraine from missed caffeine, too much caffeine taken for “recovery” could actually make your symptoms worse.
5. Chocolate — More than 20 percent of headache sufferers claim that chocolate is a major trigger for them. However, some experts think the actual number may be smaller, citing the fact that people with headaches and migraines often experience increased appetite and food cravings just before a headache starts, which may cause people to reach for chocolate. In fact, recent research suggests that cocoa may have a protective factor for nerve cells that cause migraines.
6. Cold foods — Sorry ice cream lovers, cold foods such as ice cream and frozen treats could trigger a migraine. You’re more likely to suffer from a brain freeze from cold foods if you’re overheated when eating them. Luckily for most people, brain freeze lasts for 30-60 seconds and goes away quickly.
7. MSG — Monosodium glutamate, which is common in soy sauce and as a food additive, has been linked to headaches in about 15 percent of people who get migraines. The link may be due to the fact that MSG is extremely salty, which could lead to faster dehydration.
8. Processed meats — The nitrates and nitrites used as a preservative in lunch meats, hot dogs, and bacon may dilate blood vessels and trigger headaches in some people.
According to the American Headache Society, many people do have foods that trigger their headaches, but it’s hard to pinpoint which ones to blame. Their best advice is to keep a food diary and track your headache or migraine activity—then avoid foods that seem to trigger your headaches. Also: Don’t skip meals, and stick to a healthful diet with plenty of fluids.
