So what foods trigger your headaches?

CorlissaEats
CorlissaEats Posts: 493 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So what foods trigger your headaches?

I’ve been experiencing almost daily headaches for over a year. Recently, they started to turn into migraine headaches. I think it is food related but I am unable to see the connections. I am working with my doctor on a few health issues but he is not keen on doing allergy testing. He thinks it will be a waste of time since I have no clear symptoms.

I have had my eyes tested 3 times in the last 18 months, my prescription was reduced twice, and my frames have been adjusted. The first prescription change was very significant, my left lens strength was cut in half, and the right by about 30%. The second change was minor, and the third visit showed no further change. Apparently, eyes getting better in adulthood is normal. He told me to see my GP about the headaches.

I have asthma that acts up every once in a while after I eat but again, I don’t react conclusively to any one food. I suspect milk and chicken but don’t consistently have a problem with them. No skin symptoms at all. Headaches are 4-7 days a week, every week, and not cycle related, so it’s not hormones or PMS. I have a follow up next week on a sinus X-ray but I called them, they didn’t call me to make the appointment so I am guessing there is nothing that showed up that requires addressing.

My diary is not open, but I do want to know YOUR food triggers so I can try to track different things.
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Replies

  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    wheat mostly, corn sometimes, not fresh corn though.
  • mapenguinkeeper
    mapenguinkeeper Posts: 191
    anything with nitrates/nitrites or MSG
  • callie006
    callie006 Posts: 151 Member
    Aspartame
  • CorlissaEats
    CorlissaEats Posts: 493 Member
    I'm gluten free and most of my food is home made. It can contain corn sometimes though. Is there a reaction delay for you? Its been several days since I last ate something with cornstarch in it.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    maybe a delay of 6 hours or less.

    It really happens when I overdo it.
  • _KitKat_
    _KitKat_ Posts: 1,066 Member
    Migraine sufferer here. You do not have to be allergic for a food to trigger. Soda triggers mine but mine are mostly hormonal, motion sickness, medications and stress. The best way is to keep a headache diary, yes I know "great, another thing to log", its can really help id your personal triggers. Just watching a 3d video game kills me in like 5 minutes.

    Also migraines are not just very bad headaches, there are many other symptoms (nausea, vision distortion, over sensitivity to light and sound, stiff muscles and many others) and normally you feel these before the head pain onset. If I rub my neck like it is stiff, I will be having a major migraine that evening.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    First off, have you been diagnosed as having actual migraines or is this an assumption based on a bad headache? A migraine is pretty much debilitating and can last 2 or 3 days with no relief. It isn't a tension type headache. It's usually one sided and I would compare mine to someone trying to ram a knife through my left eye. I have an aura usually before it starts accompanied by yawning and my eye watering. Once it gets going the only relief is to go to bed in a dark, quiet room and pray that I can possibly fall asleep. Nausea is usually a problem as well and a bright light is deadly.

    Now if that describes your headaches that you have 4 days out of 7 I really feel for you. I've discovered mine are triggered my low air pressure mostly so this time of year with a lot of storms is bad.

    MSG, red wine, chocolate and artificial sweeteners can be headache triggers as well as being dehydrated and having low blood sugar. A food allergy isn't usually just a headache trigger. You'd be more likely to have digestive upset or some more serious physical reaction.
  • magerum
    magerum Posts: 12,589 Member
    None.
  • kae_blah
    kae_blah Posts: 180 Member
    My triggers are cheese especially soft cheeses, tomatoes even just a little ketchup, pork (though bacon is worth a little discomfort), onions, aged meats, and juices (apple, grape, wine).

    Some of these can trigger a migraine and some lead to minor symptoms which can be dealt with using painkillers.
  • emontag
    emontag Posts: 4 Member
    Logging helped me pinpoint it down to eggs and nitrates. I just use my log on mfp and add migraine into the notes field. I get the aura with complete vision disturbances and numbness in my arm/hand and sometimes face. Then the pain starts.
  • JustAnotherCalorieCounter
    JustAnotherCalorieCounter Posts: 57
    Soft drink. Both diet & normal.
  • infamousdrew76
    infamousdrew76 Posts: 176 Member
    NONE

    These types of posts trigger my headaches!
  • addean1
    addean1 Posts: 119 Member
    Chocolate triggers my dh's migraines. Glad it's him and not me, not sure I could stay away from chocolate. ;) but he does.
  • RaggedyPond
    RaggedyPond Posts: 1,487 Member
    Going too long without food gives me headaches.
  • CorlissaEats
    CorlissaEats Posts: 493 Member
    Thanks for the input. Asking a real question so I am not sure why some find this annoying. You are your own best advocate for health. You live with yourself 365 days a year, your doc sees you a handful of times. He only knows what you tell him. I have food intolerances and diagnosed stomache issues so I am very aware that some foods are an issue for me. I've cut the ones that gave me clear digestive and balance/coordination issues but I suspect there are more that I need to address.

    And yes, they are migraines; but no, not diagnosed. I don't think I need a diagnosis to know its a migraine. I frequently have headaches so there is a comparison. I have nausea, vision issues, light sensitivity, neck and back pain/stiffness, and an overwhelming urge to find a dark room and sleep. The pain starts behind my right eye, hence the sinus x-ray I am waiting to hear back about. The degree of the pain changes each day but they can last several days without relief. In fact the last one was about a week long. I am normally a one or two a year migraine sufferer, 4 weeks represents a change that concerns me at some level. I am not taking drugs to cover the problem or am I looking to start, I want to find the root cause and address that.

    Thanks for the reminder to look at nitrates! My mother has a sulfite allergy. Meds almost killed her about 15 yrs ago and she still gets a numb jaw/tongue from things like liquid eggs and wine. I'll have to check my foods for ingredients with those.
  • Confuzzled4ever
    Confuzzled4ever Posts: 2,860 Member
    added sugar..

    esp when i stop eating it

    UGH
  • LCAura
    LCAura Posts: 1 Member
    Eggs and bakers yeast. Instant headache and mid-back pain.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,455 Member
    Migraine sufferer here. You do not have to be allergic for a food to trigger. Soda triggers mine but mine are mostly hormonal, motion sickness, medications and stress. The best way is to keep a headache diary, yes I know "great, another thing to log", its can really help id your personal triggers. Just watching a 3d video game kills me in like 5 minutes.

    Also migraines are not just very bad headaches, there are many other symptoms (nausea, vision distortion, over sensitivity to light and sound, stiff muscles and many others) and normally you feel these before the head pain onset.

    ^^ All of this.

    Common food triggers are Caffeine, Chocolate, Citrus, Peanuts, Caffeine. Sulfites are also common Migraine triggers, but there are lots of triggers for women that are not food related, like hormonal or temperature or bariatric pressure.

    Good luck. Many years of Migraine journaling and pharmaceuticals for me. They are gone now, but only because I went through menopause.
  • knittnponder
    knittnponder Posts: 1,953 Member
    Gluten is my main one. If I eat it I get a migraine and sometimes I even get the super fun flashy, blinky things in my vision and I can't see clearly.

    Artificial sweeteners also give me a headache but not migraines.

    I'm also sensitive to strong smells and can end up with a headache just from a laundry detergent that is too strong. Or if someone is wearing too much perfume or even if my own deodorant is too strong.

    I'm a special, high maintenance snowflake. :)
  • pianolover2012
    pianolover2012 Posts: 168 Member
    Before I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, I had migraines constantly. I was eating "healthy" and had switched to whole grains. Little did I know, that I was killing myself by switching to wheat products. One evening, I had a migraine that was so severe, I felt as if I was having a stroke. I could not move my left side and felt unable to focus. The next day, my primary physician did bloodwork that led to a diagnoses of Celiac. Since going gluten-free, I have not had the first migraine. It might be worth checking it out. More info on Celiac.org. Hope you feel better!
  • pianolover2012
    pianolover2012 Posts: 168 Member
    Thanks for the input. Asking a real question so I am not sure why some find this annoying. You are your own best advocate for health. You live with yourself 365 days a year, your doc sees you a handful of times. He only knows what you tell him. I have food intolerances and diagnosed stomache issues so I am very aware that some foods are an issue for me. I've cut the ones that gave me clear digestive and balance/coordination issues but I suspect there are more that I need to address.

    And yes, they are migraines; but no, not diagnosed. I don't think I need a diagnosis to know its a migraine. I frequently have headaches so there is a comparison. I have nausea, vision issues, light sensitivity, neck and back pain/stiffness, and an overwhelming urge to find a dark room and sleep. The pain starts behind my right eye, hence the sinus x-ray I am waiting to hear back about. The degree of the pain changes each day but they can last several days without relief. In fact the last one was about a week long. I am normally a one or two a year migraine sufferer, 4 weeks represents a change that concerns me at some level. I am not taking drugs to cover the problem or am I looking to start, I want to find the root cause and address that.

    Thanks for the reminder to look at nitrates! My mother has a sulfite allergy. Meds almost killed her about 15 yrs ago and she still gets a numb jaw/tongue from things like liquid eggs and wine. I'll have to check my foods for ingredients with those.
    ** You can always tell when people have never experienced a migraine- it is NOTHING like a headache! Feel better soon!
  • TigerBite
    TigerBite Posts: 611 Member
    Turkey and MSG ...

    ETA: aspartame ... asparagus ... all migraine triggers ... Luckily, I'm good with red wine and cheese, if I wasn't, I'd just have someone take me out back and shoot me ...
  • knittnponder
    knittnponder Posts: 1,953 Member
    I'm gluten free and most of my food is home made. It can contain corn sometimes though. Is there a reaction delay for you? Its been several days since I last ate something with cornstarch in it.

    My friend is celiac and can take up to three days before some of her symptoms hit but it's usually much faster than that. I know you said you cook at home and you're gluten free but I wanted mention that if you're not being careful about cross contamination you could still get symptoms even if you're not eating it. I was baking and decorating cakes (gluten filled) but I never, ever tasted them. Just the flour in the air contaminated me though and I ended up with symptoms from it. My oldest used to hide in her bedroom until the air had cleared and I'd wiped everything down because she always had symptoms when I'd bake for other people. I've pretty much stopped doing it now because of that.

    If you're not careful about cross contamination in food you buy you could also get glutened there. You may already be super careful but I figured it wouldn't hurt to mention it. I hope you find your triggers.
  • TigerBite
    TigerBite Posts: 611 Member
    Thanks for the input. Asking a real question so I am not sure why some find this annoying. You are your own best advocate for health. You live with yourself 365 days a year, your doc sees you a handful of times. He only knows what you tell him. I have food intolerances and diagnosed stomache issues so I am very aware that some foods are an issue for me. I've cut the ones that gave me clear digestive and balance/coordination issues but I suspect there are more that I need to address.

    And yes, they are migraines; but no, not diagnosed. I don't think I need a diagnosis to know its a migraine. I frequently have headaches so there is a comparison. I have nausea, vision issues, light sensitivity, neck and back pain/stiffness, and an overwhelming urge to find a dark room and sleep. The pain starts behind my right eye, hence the sinus x-ray I am waiting to hear back about. The degree of the pain changes each day but they can last several days without relief. In fact the last one was about a week long. I am normally a one or two a year migraine sufferer, 4 weeks represents a change that concerns me at some level. I am not taking drugs to cover the problem or am I looking to start, I want to find the root cause and address that.

    Thanks for the reminder to look at nitrates! My mother has a sulfite allergy. Meds almost killed her about 15 yrs ago and she still gets a numb jaw/tongue from things like liquid eggs and wine. I'll have to check my foods for ingredients with those.
    ** You can always tell when people have never experienced a migraine- it is NOTHING like a headache! Feel better soon!

    True that! ... Hurts so bad you can barley talk, let alone sleep ... I've had both migraines and cluster headaches ... NOT FUN, seriously, if my mom wasn't a nurse and hadn't told me I wasn't going to die, the first time I experienced the types of headaches, my @ss would have insisted on going to the ER ...
  • Care76
    Care76 Posts: 556 Member
    I always had headaches almost my entire life. And yes, migraines too. I did an elimination diet about 6 years ago and found out my triggers are MSG, soy (even organic soy), and pretty much most artificial sweetners and flavourings. I don't always get a headache right away. Sometimes it is if there is a small amount of soy and I eat it a lot. Then I will realize what I'm eating and it will go away after a few days or even weeks. Like recently I realized the prenatal I have been taking for almost two years has soy in it. I know it didn't when I first started taking it but at some point it changed. I started having daily headaches while pregnant and we thought it was hormones. Then they kept coming after delivery. Then I litterally just saw they now have soy. Don't I feel stupid.

    It can be so many things. But I would do elimination if you can although it can take a long time to figure out. And keep a headache journal and write down everything you did that day.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    none
  • SmileCozYouCan
    SmileCozYouCan Posts: 315 Member
    Chocolate =( But I NEVER care
  • PinkNinjaLaura
    PinkNinjaLaura Posts: 3,202 Member
    Cheddar cheese & Italian sausage both do it for me. I can eat a small amount of cheddar and it will be okay, but if I were to eat a larger piece of it or eat it a couple days in a row then the migraine hits. Any amount of Italian sausage (or more specifically one of the spices in it) will trigger a migraine within a couple of hours.
  • wiscck
    wiscck Posts: 185 Member
    Nightshades. Bell peppers, chili peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, tobacco...
  • miranda_mom
    miranda_mom Posts: 873 Member
    Red wine and pizza.

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