Years ago, I suffered from terribly severe migraines. (Is there any other kind?)
I realized the cause and effect that food can have. After I eliminated the foods that triggered my migraines, they became much less severe and less frequent. Over the years, I have continued to eliminate more “trigger” foods as I suspected.
So how do foods cause migraines and other pain?
Some foods can cause inflammation (irritation and swelling). The inflammation of the tissues causes discomfort and muscle pain. In your blood vessels, inflammation can cause a migraine.
Food can also cause an allergic reaction. Some of us have severe allergic reactions that can put us in danger. When we discover such an allergy, for example to peanuts, of course we stay away from peanuts.
We should also stay away from foods that “trigger” our headaches or migraines.
Sometimes we can identify a “trigger” food. If a food causes a symptom like a stuffy nose, headache, or a lot of mucus (causing throat clearing), that’s a clue. The reaction can happen very soon after eating something, but sometimes the headache takes a while. That makes it more difficult to find out.
You may have many food triggers, or you may only have a few common ones.
Sometimes it’s not really the food–it is chemical products Y other ingredients What are they additional MSG is a common food additive that causes nasal congestion, migraines, and headaches. Artificial sweeteners are also common migraine triggers.
You may not realize that what you’re eating is actually causing a large part of your headache. It is helpful to keep track and look for links.
For example, I had a friend who always had a migraine within half an hour of eating an orange. After seeing the connection, she stopped eating oranges. It was easy for her to know the cause of her migraine, because it came so quickly after the orange.
Some of the most common trigger foods are:
- came
- old cheese
- Pork
- seafood
- citric fruits
- nuts, especially pistachios
- misery
There are many more than this. And, not everyone gets a headache from the same foods. I’ve seen fruits on lists of migraine triggers that I ate frequently that never caused me a migraine.
Sometimes you can get away with eating small amounts of a food, such as nuts, as long as you don’t do it too often. Sometimes she won’t be able to eat anything at all.
You may remember the good old days when sugar was in your sodas, gum, cereal, and ice cream. Read the labels now, and you’re likely to find high-fructose corn syrup with artificial sweeteners.
You have to read the labels to know what ingredients, in addition to those you expected, are giving you.
There are many causes for migraines and headaches. Muscles and soft tissues are linked to most headaches, but food, food additives, hormones, posture, sleep and work habits also play a role.
And, as you can see, many times your headache or migraine starts with what you put in your mouth.