Nutrition to Treat Headaches

sarahenagy
sarahenagy Posts: 65 Member
edited November 13 in Food and Nutrition
Hey everybody - First, let me say that I realize things like food sensitivities and gluten-free diets are highly controversial. But I am desperate and to the point where I am willing to try just about anything, controversial or not. A little backstory - I have had "sinus problems/pain" most of my life. I just managed it with allergy meds, assuming allergies were the issue. But I always had bad days or stretches of days with lots of pain and pressure behind my eyes (not really any other sinusey symtoms - runny nose, etc.), and nobody could figure out why. I have been through several ENTs, sinus specialists, CT scans, allergists, etc. In March of 2016 I got what I thought was a bad infection because I developed constant pain and pressure that wouldn't go away. I did several rounds of antibiotics and steroids and nothing helped. Then the pain spread to the back of my head, and eventually to all over my head, and morphed into a burning/stabbing sensation in addition to the painful pressure I have around my sinus area. A neurologist diagnosed occipital neuralgia and put me on a nerve pain drug. This has helped minimally. PT has helped relieve some of the symptoms, but the headache is pretty much still always there. As it has been for over 6 months. I am exhausted all of the time because of the pain. I have gained 25 pounds because I am too tired to exercise or cook. My husband and I were planning to have a baby in the next year, but there is no way I am able to take care of a baby in this state. I am starting to feel a bit hopeless.

My question - my PT suggested nutritional testing to see if food sensitivities might be the root of the issue since nothing else has helped. Has anyone tried treating headaches with nutrition?

There is, of course, tons of stuff online about headaches and food, but I wanted to hear personal stories from you all, who I know are knowledgeable about and interested in nutrition.

I have just started to look into Celiac and gluten sensitivity. In addition to the headaches, I do have several other symptoms related to these (skin issues, IBS, fatigue, etc.).

I have had food sensitivity testing...waiting on the results. Once I get them I will do an elimination diet, so I guess that will ultimately tell. Just curious what you all had experience with in the meantime.

Replies

  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,341 Member
    It's certainly worth the testing.

    From early childhood to my late teens I suffered horrific migraines as a result of consuming lactose, MSG, duck eggs, pecans, among other things. I mostly grew out of my food induced migraines, but if I hadn't been tested and done an elimination diet, I wouldn't have been able to pinpoint the things that set me off because there was a variety.

  • lizandrashaw
    lizandrashaw Posts: 143 Member
    I had migraines 13 days out of every month. I'm talking about throwing up all day kind of migraines. Could not even hold meds down to deal with the pain. Since I was tested for food allergies and eliminated those foods, I have not had a single migraine in 16 years. People can tell you that this stuff is bogus all day long. Get tested anyway.
  • laur357
    laur357 Posts: 896 Member
    I think being tested for allergies is a good first step. And while lots of people are just eager to jump on any bandwagon that rolls past, eliminating certain foods when you really have a problem can be very helpful.
  • cmarangi
    cmarangi Posts: 131 Member
    I have definitely noticed a difference in headaches since I eliminated what doesn't agree with my system. If I get a headache now I look back on what I ate and every time I've eaten something with wheat. Nutrition can solve or at least decrease many ailments and it's smart to look at that avenue instead of just treating symptoms.
  • fishshark
    fishshark Posts: 1,886 Member
    When I had to have a spinal tap, along with having to sit still for 4 hours to not paralyze myself... They said id have a few weeks to a month of insane headaches that NOTHING can cure but coffee. Sure enough it helped. Slightly off topic but.. id get some tests done to ensure you are eliminating or the cause of your headaches.
  • Omayya2016
    Omayya2016 Posts: 1 Member
    Please check out Whole 30 diet, where you eat clean for 30 days, avoiding legumes, grains, sugar, alcohol and food with additives. I used to get a headache behind my eyes and around my head (tension headache) once a month for 5 days! Whole30 eliminated them! After 1 month I lost 10lbs and my headache, after 4 months I lost 18 lbs and headaches and night sweats were all gone...slept better and had a lot of energy and focus. The book has testimonials from people with different ailments that have been cured.
    Please look into it, they're on social media, they have cookbooks and daily recipes on instagram, etc. good luck, hope you feel better soon!
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    My son had terrible headaches for 3 yrs in middle school. We started to eliminate certain foods and discovered that it was salami, which he loved and ate alot of. He eliminated it and his headaches were gone. Good luck.
  • ccjlgrider
    ccjlgrider Posts: 49 Member
    Read Heal Your Headache. Especially the part about diet and about use of pain medications. If you are using any pain meds including Tylenol or ibuprofen regularly, you must break that cycle. I have severe migraines and take two different preventatives. My neuro told me NO caffeine. None. Regular use can contribute to daily headaches. It can help a headache if used only rarely. But I don't even do that. It is hard to follow the dietary and pain med advice in this book but it is spot on.

    https://www.amazon.com/Heal-Your-Headache-David-Buchholz/dp/0761125663/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1477225992&sr=8-1&keywords=heal+your+headache
  • AndOne8675
    AndOne8675 Posts: 151 Member
    I also get severe migraines. I deal with mine nutritionally and life style changes. When I was in my 20's through elimination diet I found my triggers were processed meat..nitrates, peanut oil and non organic apples...what ever is sprayed on them gives me instant aura.
    Awhile back I was getting migraines everyday and avoiding my triggers. I discovered my vitamin d was tablet form, not in capsules and that was it!
    Now a days I look at the label and if there are preservatives and things I can't pronounce I generally avoid so I dont have to find out via migraine.
    I also never use any pain reliever or ibuprofen for anything other than a migraine same as another poster above.
  • marimeg
    marimeg Posts: 19 Member
    Thank you for posting, I am in this same boat as well, wondering what to start cutting out. I've had 10-15 migraines a month since November and I am just -worn out-. After every test imaginable, my doc has suggested elimination diet.
  • susiejof
    susiejof Posts: 201 Member
    Check out the "Heal Your Headache - Migraine Diet" group on facebook. It's a pretty active forum for people doing elimination diets (Heal Your Headache and the Charleston Diet especially) for their migraines. Also, read "Heal Your Headache" by Dr. Buchholz as the above poster mentioned. I've been following his elimination diet since June and it has greatly reduced the number of migraines I get and my migraine associated vertigo seems somewhat reduced. I am so very glad I tried it!
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    My son's headaches were migraines not sinus related but I share here for the general information.

    http://www.migrainedisorders.org/migraine-safe-foods-by-category/

    But when it was all said and done water helped the most. He'd guzzle it a litre at a time. I think it would stop the vein spasms in his brain.
  • PennWalker
    PennWalker Posts: 554 Member
    To the OP:

    Do you know about rebound headaches? By any chance do you regularly take over the counter pain meds like Advil, aspirin, Excedrin, etc.? I have always been headache prone and was diagnosed with migraines many years ago -- but then I went through a horrible period of about 3 years when I had severe headaches several days a week. Sometimes they were so bad I could barely get out of bed. I began to wonder if I had a fatal illness.

    I went to all kinds of specialists and had a lot of tests, even an MRI to find out if I had a brain tumor. Nobody could find the reason for the headaches. Then one day I read the back of the Advil bottle. It said to only take for two weeks. I'd been taking it for several years, alternating it with some other products. I googled it and learned about rebound headaches, where some people who are headache prone will become "addicted" to the headache med, and when it wears off will get another headache, so they take more meds, and enter into a horrible cycle. Many headache centers say a large number of people suffering from constant headaches actually have rebound headaches. The cure is to stop taking the meds (you will get a huge headache at first, but it goes away).

    Please ignore if you don't take over the counter meds. If you do, it would be worth stopping to see what happens.

    I can also get headaches from being dehydrated and certain foods and by avoiding them can prevent migraines.
  • jo_nz
    jo_nz Posts: 548 Member
    I have a history of headaches and sinus infections...but in more recent years I have been diagnosed with migraines and now wonder if some of my previous issues were actually migraines all along.
    I used to get "sinus infections" quite regularly - we were even discussing the possibility of surgery. Now I haven't had one in years. And I don't get many headaches either - when I do get migraines, the meds work like nothing ever did before.

    Lack of sleep and dehydration are contributing factors for my migraines and certain wines can trigger it, but I've never found other specific foods that I could link (I only tried elimination diets, not testing).

    For my the biggest trigger is hormones - during pregnancy and breastfeeding my headaches stopped completely! And now I can clearly see that the worst times are during my period and around ovulation.

    I take a preventative pill each day and it has been completely life changing.

    Good luck with your test results!
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
    edited October 2016
    jo_nz wrote: »

    For my the biggest trigger is hormones - during pregnancy and breastfeeding my headaches stopped completely! And now I can clearly see that the worst times are during my period and around ovulation.

    Period is my trigger as well. I find some of the food advice to be condescending or victim blamey, almost accusatory. I understand the tracking food is meant to give a feeling of control, but the list of possible food triggers includes all foods and also includes fasting.

    My identified triggers are menstruation and relaxing after intense stress, and barometric pressure. On my period anything will give me a migraine, pregnant or nursing nothing will, otherwise only very intense relaxation or comedown after stress will possibly trigger one. They always start when i am asleep, and occur less often than once a month.

    OP I hope you are able to find relief soon.
  • chunky_pinup
    chunky_pinup Posts: 758 Member
    Omayya2016 wrote: »
    Please check out Whole 30 diet, where you eat clean for 30 days, avoiding legumes, grains, sugar, alcohol and food with additives. I used to get a headache behind my eyes and around my head (tension headache) once a month for 5 days! Whole30 eliminated them! After 1 month I lost 10lbs and my headache, after 4 months I lost 18 lbs and headaches and night sweats were all gone...slept better and had a lot of energy and focus. The book has testimonials from people with different ailments that have been cured.
    Please look into it, they're on social media, they have cookbooks and daily recipes on instagram, etc. good luck, hope you feel better soon!

    Tension headaches cannot even compare to what is felt in a O.N. flareup, which is what the OP states she was diagnosed with. That is apples to oranges. Whole 30 actually utilizes a lot of foods known to trigger inflammation (nightshades, etc.) and since O.N. flareups are often triggered by blood vessel inflammation, this would not be wise.

    OP...food can definitely trigger increased episodes with Occipital Neuralgia. It's a chronic inflammatory condition, and a lot of foods to have inflammatory components to them. I try to limit inflammatory foods, but it's hard for me. But I do realize I get a lot of relief when I'm really strict with it. It doesn't ever go away, but it does help to live a normal life. I would definitely go through the food testing.
  • YvetteK2015
    YvetteK2015 Posts: 654 Member
    Well,the OP was diagnosed with O N by a neurologist, not a headache specialist. At least that's how it sounded from the post. Neurologists don't have much training in headaches, although many people mistakenly think they do. They don't know all the headache types, so given a list of symptoms, it could be a misdiagnosis. I'm not saying it is, but I would never hang my hat on what a plain neurologist has to say. Anyone with headaches for that long and that bad should be seeing a headache specialist. They know so much more and have many more ways to treat headaches.
  • hlltwin
    hlltwin Posts: 55 Member
    robininfl wrote: »
    jo_nz wrote: »

    For my the biggest trigger is hormones - during pregnancy and breastfeeding my headaches stopped completely! And now I can clearly see that the worst times are during my period and around ovulation.

    Period is my trigger as well. I find some of the food advice to be condescending or victim blamey, almost accusatory. I understand the tracking food is meant to give a feeling of control, but the list of possible food triggers includes all foods and also includes fasting.

    My identified triggers are menstruation and relaxing after intense stress, and barometric pressure. On my period anything will give me a migraine, pregnant or nursing nothing will, otherwise only very intense relaxation or comedown after stress will possibly trigger one. They always start when i am asleep, and occur less often than once a month.

    OP I hope you are able to find relief soon.

    I'm right there with you - my biggest triggers are the weather, coming down from intense stress and hormones. I did find garlic as a trigger for some of my migraines (and if I'm on my monthly and eat garlic, I will get a headache). My sister is triggered by red 40, eliminating that from her diet helped immeasurably. We're bother triggered by aspartame (I know it's safe to eat, but then so is garlic).

    As someone previously mentioned, being dehydrated is another common trigger. Since getting on MFP and actually tracking my water intake, my headaches have definitely decreased in frequency.
  • dydn11402
    dydn11402 Posts: 103 Member
    maybe a long shot but have you ever considered that the pain may be tmj related? i also have sinus headaches all the time, sometimes with the other symptoms (mucus, etc) but other times, without. someone i know who also suffered from constant headaches went from doc to doc and finally was able to pinpoint it to her tmj issues. when i got the next headache, i actually did trace the "sinus" pain right back to my jaw! i have always had tmj issues (jaw cracking, jaw locking occasionally) but never connected my headaches to it. but now im pretty sure that my sinus pain, when lacking other sinus infection symptoms, is probably related to my jaw. i havent gotten as far as actually treating it but my friend has been going for jaw injections and had a plate made to fit her jaw for sleeping and she says that it has helped. just a thought...
  • sarahenagy
    sarahenagy Posts: 65 Member
    Hello everyone - Sorry for the delay. Super busy fall and holiday season. Not sure if anyone is still reading this thread or will get a notification, but to answer some questions...

    I am aware of the rebound headache and rarely take painkillers. Only when I absolutely need to (example - I'm a teacher and I advise the student group that puts on homecoming, on fall homecoming dance day I took some Advil to be able to get through the stressful day). I take something maybe one day out of every 14.

    I have been evaluated for TMJ and am in treatment for extremely tight neck and jaw muscles. The physical therapy I do with the TMJ treatment and the night bite guard do seem to help with some of the pain around my face and ears, but the back of the head pain is still pretty much always there. I feel like the tights muscles around my face and jaw probably are caused by whatever is putting my head in pain all the time. Of course I'm all clenched up. I forgot my night guard two nights in a row a few weeks ago and felt terrible face pain for several days after. It's just treating a symptom.

    I have seen two different neurologists, one of which claims to be a headache specialist. Both have diagnosed occipital neuralgia and a nerve block was did help some of the pain (the awful jabbing, stabbing, burning pain on the back of my head). But I also obviously have another type of headache in addition to ON, as the nerve block did not take away all of the pain. Physical therapy and dry needling also help some of these symptoms, but have not cured me of the headaches, so clearly, something else is still going on. I am looking for a new headache specialist, but it is tough to find one who actually wants to treat the cause and not just hand out drugs and injections. So far every headache person I have seen says the cause is a chemical imbalance in my brain and that drugs are the only thing to control it. I have tried gabapentin and inderal without success. Topamax is next on the list. Although, as I said in my original post, I would like to have a baby in the next year, so I'm hesitant to take medication. Even if it works, I'll have to stop it to get pregnant.

    I have tracked my headaches daily for about 4 months, and they do not seem to be related to my cycle. But I guess this cannot be ruled out until a major hormone shift occurs. I do also have endometriosis, so that's a clue that my hormones are out of whack.

    In the past couple of months I have found a combination of supplements, exercise, therapies, etc. that control the pain better. I am at least able to function more normally.

    I put off any food trials until after the holidays. It would generally be hard to do an elimination diet during that time and my husband and I traveled to Europe over the holidays as well. Wasn't about to try and be on a super restrictive diet for Christmas in Paris. I was, thankfully, with all of my therapies, etc. feeling okay enough to go and enjoy it, although I was a heachachey mess when we got back. Being off of my routine I suppose.

    About a week ago I started a full elimination diet, under the supervision of a nutritionist, based on results of a food sensitivies test. I tested sensitive to some of things mentioned here, interestingly enough (garlic, red 40, sweet potatoes), but am also off of gluten, dairy, and caffeine. I am basically eating oatmeal, chicken, rice, and a few fruits and vegetables. It isn't pleasant, but hope it affords some answers. I had hoped I would miraculously feel 100% better and know for sure it was food related. That hasn't happened yet. I do feel a little better, but I think that is exacerbated by the fact that I felt pretty bad when I got back from Europe a couple of weeks ago and am just now getting back to normal with my exercise, therapy, and supplement regiment. But I am only halfway through the super restrictive phase, so I'm willing to give it more time.

    Best of luck to anyone who suffers with daily headaches. It's the worst.

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