Good news - you're already subscribed! Corn Raspberries (histamine, tyramine) What do you think? All alcoholic beverages (histamine, tyramine, sulfites) So how do you know which of these foods (if any) are actually triggering your migraines? If you start to look at the entirety of the list of what people report as migraine attack food triggers, it includes just about everything. Swiss chard Raisins (histamine, sulfites) Foods To Avoid For Headaches. Try this roundup of migraine-safe recipes. Any containing restricted ingredients. Plain vodka, gin or white rum are the least problematic alcoholic beverages, but any alcohol can be a trigger; it’s best to avoid all alcohol for your elimination diet to be most informative, Flavored milks (histamine, MSG) How to avoid food-related migraines "Migraine disease is complex and affected by many factors," says Simy Parikh, ... You may have noticed that the migraine trigger list was lacking a few major food groups — "healthy" foods such as fruits, vegetables, and protein, in particular. Benzoyl peroxide (used to bleach wheat) (histamine) Please advise as I am a i bit confused which way to. Loganberry (histamine) Slow-cooking methods, like in a Crockpot or oven-roasted should be avoided. Broccoli I admit, it’s more fun to add foods to my diet than to take them away, but research shows some items can be migraine triggers. The Complete Headache Chart Migraine … Molasses Artichoke Nectarine (histamine) Since the list is restrictive enough, I recommend trying the diet with dairy first. Many additional vegetables contain nitrates/nitrites, but excluding them is not necessary to start. Only use ground meat if you grind it yourself or have a butcher do it right before you buy it. Pre-ground meat (if you grind it yourself or have a butcher grind it right before you buy it, ground meat shouldbe OK) (histamine) Safflower Yeast, yeast extract, brewer’s yeast, nutritional yeast (tyramine, MSG) Plain gelatin Parsnips Thirdly, you have molasses down there twice. This article represents the opinions, thoughts, and experiences of the author; none of this content has been paid for by any advertiser. Turmeric, Anise (histamine) We never sell or share your email address. Other possible high nitrate/nitrite vegetables include: arugula, bok choi, chervil, celery, celeriac (celery root), cress, cucumber, endive, fennel, green beans, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, lima beans, melon, parsley. In your list onions are on the “try” side. Alcohol is one of the more common products thought to trigger migraine. Hot paprika (histamine) Known for their high tyramine content, citrus foods are an absolute no for any migrainer. I added onions to the list. Migraine.com does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Any dried fruit that doesn’t say sulfite-free (sulfites). 27 Foods That Trigger Migraines . Endive All meat should be cooked or frozen within a day of purchasing, cooked leftovers can be frozen. Any pure, unbleached flour or grain, including wheat, buckwheat, millet, teff, amaranth, rye, kasha, kamut, wheatberries, sorghum, tapioca, spelt, bulgur, barley AVOID. Consider a small healthy snack to tide you over between meals if you get hungry or if you start to feel the symptoms that typically happen for you prior to a migraine." The tyramine content of the others is debated, but traditional migraine diets recommend avoiding them. Silent Migraine (Migraine Aura Without Pain), CGRP: A New Direction for Migraine Treatment, Acupressure for Alternative Migraine Treatment, Acupuncture for Alternative Migraine Treatment, Click here to download a printable pdf of the table below, Click here to download a printable pdf of the table above, http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases_conditions/hic_Allergy_Overview/hic_Sulfite_Sensitivity, http://www.headaches.org/education/Headache_Topic_Sheets/Low_Tyramine_Diet_for_Migraine, https://www.glutenfreesociety.org/does-non-celiac-gluten-sensitivity-exist/?inf_contact_key=714c9237bdf73e080cd47899b4150a9ec0b5f334b9e6a52090c6ed13e61e912c, There is debate about whether excluding vegetables that are high in nitrates or nitrites from one’s diet is necessary, partly because the nitrate/nitrite content can vary widely depending on varietal and growing and soil conditions. Additionally, 27% of those who experience migraines believe that particular foods are personally triggering. Kelp Sulfite ammonia caramel (sulfite) Cauliflower That said, there's scientific evidence that suggests migraines may be triggered by certain foods. Try again or reach out to contact@Migraine.com. Baked goods leavened with baking soda, like biscuits, quick breads, muffins, scones, soda bread, scones I included nitrates/nitrites and sulfites/sulfates because they’re included in traditional migraine diets, but my hunch is they aren’t generally the issue. Cumin Cream Homemade condiments and relishes using allowed ingredients, Vinegar For example, the things that trigger my migraine attacks like strong odors, changes in weather, eating or drinking something with aspartame, eating too much avocado, hormones, etc. These are the SIX foods YOU should avoid MIGRAINES aren’t just bad headaches, they can cause people to feel sick, experience sensitivity to light and some even have tingling in the arms. Here is a list of foods and beverages that the PCRM considers good for migraine. Now let's get to the list of the top ten offending common migraine triggers that are more easy to avoid than say your hormones! 2) This list is not intended as a permanent dietary change. Share. Another option would be to eliminate dairy and gluten first before instituting the rest of the diet. Taro root Instead, turn to a migraine tracker to see if any of these might be causing you pain. Turkey (white meat may be better than dark) Thank you so much for the list of “OK” foods – makes shopping and eating out so much easier. BHT (histamine) However, it’s important to recognize that everyone’s list of trigger foods is a little bit different. (2012) Ottawa, Ontario: Health Canada. Driving yourself crazy trying to eliminate all of those foods based on what other people have reported is, generally speaking, not productive and could be detrimental to overall health if you eliminate too many things. Sodium hydrogen sulfite (sulfite) Prunes (histamine, tyramine) As long as I drink 1 cup in the morning and wait a couple hours before I have another cup of java. Cardamom Anything fermented (histamine, tyramine) Barley malt (sulfites) Juice from allowed fruits, vegetables Learn more about how we maintain editorial integrity here. Some migraine sufferers have found that they are particularly sensitive to caffeine, nitrates, alcohol, sodium, and/or MSG. Pure jams, jellies, marmalades, conserves made with allowed ingredients Green peas (tyramine) So, without further ado, here’s a list of the most common food triggers for migraine sufferers, in no particular order. Caffiene actually helps me. Lentils (not red) For example, your friend with migraines might need to avoid or limit chocolate, but you might not have any issues with the candy. The top migraine headache foods to avoid and other migraine triggers, as well as lifestyle tricks and foods to prevent migraines or treat current ones. I am very grateful for your work. Blue cheese, brie, cheddar, swiss, feta, mozzarella, and most other common cheeses are good to avoid. You suggest trying other kinds of lettuce; I can’t because the sal content varies too much. Second of all, thank you for telling me why my decaf coffee was making my head hurt! If you decide to avoid all legumes, don’t forget that peanut butter is a legume. But I never really found out what (or which biogenic amine) makes onions a trigger. Fruit juices and cocktails made with restricted ingredients (histamine) Walnuts and pecans definitely contain tyramine. Cucumber Pickles (histamine, tyramine, sulfites, nitrites, MSG) But also confusing, I suspect, for many who may not realise that they’re also reacting to the salicylate content in foods that you’ve listed in the Eat column (but I’ve been told to avoid for 30years). and you could instantly get a migraine, whereas on good days where your threshold is higher, you could eat the trigger food and get by with it, not even realizing it’s a trigger. 28 Foods That Cause Migraines . Bread Acceptable purchases: Any white, wheat, rye or pumpernickel store-bought bread. Grapes (sulfites) Bok Choi Cinnamon (histamine) Ice cream with no restricted ingredients, Any fermented dairy products, like cheese, sour cream, processed cheese, buttermilk, yogurt, kefir (histamine, MSG, tyramine). See note 4 below. Sometimes it’s even Celiac Disease that hasn’t progressed enough for a United States doctor to take it seriously even with evidence staring at him in the face. To keep a nutritionally balanced diet, I do not recommend attempting to restrict these vegetables in your first. The bottom line Vestibular migraine attacks, which are characterized by vertigo, can be extremely uncomfortable, though removing trigger foods may relieve symptoms. Maybe the long cooking time makes more tyramine? Coconut Rhubarb Nutmeg (histamine) Dill Cherry (histamine) One thing I would like to add for those who are just starting out on their elimination diet (I understand everyone’s migraine journey is different, and that this list is what you have found to work as a baseline elimination process). What to avoid: Beef liver and chicken liver, marinated meat, ready-made hot wings, barbeque chicken, breaded meat like fried chicken or nuggets or breaded chicken patties, seasoned rotisserie chicken, and any ready-made meal of meat, noodle or rice like burritos, lasagna, Rice-a-Roni and Hamburger Helper. Mom is already bringing apple, so that’s out. Fish sauce (tyramine, MSG), Basil And, of course, not all foods are your enemy. Hord, N. G., Tang, Y., & Bryan, N. S. (2009). Artificial colors (histamine, MSG) Currant (histamine) Homemade sweets and baked goods with allowed ingredients, All chocolate and cocoa (histamine) Focus on whole, natural foods such as:-- Fruits.-- Vegetables. All other vegetables and beans including leeks, scallions, shallots, spring onions and garlic. In small doses, it can help … Unfortunately, these painful ingredients can be found in bacon, sausages, and hotdogs … Citrus foods include: oranges, tomatoes, lemons, limes, and vinegar. Retrieved Feb. 3, 2015 from: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/pubs/securit/2012-allergen_sulphites-sulfites/index-eng.php. The following list outlines a program designed to mitigate such headaches. Star fruit, Apricot (histamine) If you avoid a food, you are sensitive to you will likely still have migraines because that was not the trigger. Potassium sulfite (sulfite) Raisins (histamine) As with dairy, I recommend either trying the diet with gluten products first or cutting out gluten and dairy before doing trying the rest of the diet. Collard greens A healthful diet should consist of fresh foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, many of my categories shifted around 20 years ago, and again about 5 years ago but I didn’t know. But honestly, I kind of gave up on sandwiches. It is one the top 10 most common trigger foods list. If you identify a food trigger, you will be able to avoid it, especially when you know you’re facing other factors that can trigger a migraine attack. So, along with following the list of foods to eat when you have Migraine, you should also avoid foods that triggers migraine headaches. About 20% of patients with lupus have migraine-like headaches. Chicken This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Download the National Headache Foundation’s low-tyramine diet guide by clicking here. Traditional migraine diets say to avoid all legumes, but my dietician told me they were OK. I do have one question regarding sweet potatoes. The tyramine content of the others is debated, but traditional migraine diets recommend avoiding them. Chives It lists both foods to eat and foods to avoid. It can be hard for me to tell at times, but I think pintos, navy, and black trigger migraine in me. Pinto Beans Pumpkin (histamine) Rutabaga Navy Beans Celery seeds Food allergy testing can also be helpful, though you should still be wary of certain foods even if you aren’t allergic to them. Fish that is gutted and cooked within 30 minutes of being caught is fine, but not many of us have access to that! Tweet. Sorry: for some reason, autocorrect drops or garbles words as they’re submitted. Persimmons Spam. Watercress Herbal tea made from allowed herbs and spices (ginger and peppermint are the most common, holy basil is another option, chamomile should be fine) Twitter. Does anyone know about blueberries? Guar gum (MSG) Pin. Soybean oil Fermented beverages (histamine, tyramine) Calcium sulfite (sulfite) MSG: MSG hides under more than 40 different names! Emily Lockhart. Published on January 15, 2014 Updated on October 1, 2020. Tomato and all tomato products (histamine, tyramine, sulfites, nitrites). Sweet potato (tyramine) Very helpful lists for easily explaining to others what I’m trying to deal with, especially when shopping. Yes, some people are like “I’d like the gluten free entree, please, and could I have some more breadsticks?”, however it’s also possibly serious. Coconut (a nut) and quinoa and amaranth (seeds) … Butternut Squash Research recently presented at the International Headache Society suggests that cocoa may actually protect the nerve cells that cause migraine headaches. Be your own expert by keeping a log of the foods you have eaten before a migraine attack, and see whether the removal of these foods from your diet reduces or eliminates your headaches. Watermelon Microbial cultures (histamine) We are interesting folk. Curry powder (histamine) "Eat healthy foods that make you feel good, and eat them frequently throughout the day without skipping meals. This information is not designed to replace a physician’s independent judgment about the appropriateness or risks of a procedure for a given patient. Some people report avoiding gluten has reduced their migraine frequency. Quinoa rather than rice, because rice grows ages faster when cooked. MSG is a flavor enhancer used in a variety of processed foods, like frozen or canned foods, soups, snacks, seasoning, and more. By slowly eliminating foods one-by-one, you can start to recognize what spurs your migraines. Studies confirm that alcoholic beverages are a common trigger, with certain chemicals in alcohol like tyramine and histamine believed to be the problem. Unfortunately for cheese lovers, this delicacy can also be a trigger for migraine symptoms. If I have to eat fresh and can’t buy fresh enough, but can’t cook on the spot, I’m not sure what to do. https://www.glutenfreesociety.org/does-non-celiac-gluten-sensitivity-exist/?inf_contact_key=714c9237bdf73e080cd47899b4150a9ec0b5f334b9e6a52090c6ed13e61e912c. Twelve percent to 60 percent of people say that certain foods trigger migraine headaches. Even reliable sources have dramatic differences in their lists of foods high in nitrates/nitrites, resulting in an overwhelming list. Onion (unsure, listed on traditional migraine diets) They aren’t listed. Migraine. \"Chocolate may be getting a bad rap as a migraine trigger,\" says Dr. Rosen. List of Foods to Avoid in Migraine. Any game meat (histamine, tyramine) Foods to avoid to prevent migraine attacks Caffeine A compound found in coffee, tea, and chocolate, consuming too much caffeine as well as caffeine withdrawal can lead to the development of migraines. Anchovies. Despite the lack of science, the most common foods and drinks reported to be potential headache triggers include: Aged cheese (blue cheese, brie, cheddar, English stilton, feta, gorgonzola, mozzarella, muenster, parmesan, swiss) Alcohol (red wine, beer, whiskey, Scotch, and champagne … Pineapple (histamine) Mustard Greens Forget lemon juice! Carrots Prepared condiments and relishes, including ketchup, mustard and sauerkraut (histamine, sulfites, MSG) The most common … Most commercial salad dressing (histamine) Ginger Even though we’d hate to take the fun out of even more of your favorite foods, we should let you know about these other potential trigger foods. Coffee (limit to one cup a day if caffeinated; if decaf, make sure it is decaffeinated using a water process rather than chemicals—chemical decaffeination is the norm, The Coffee Bean is the only large chain I know of that uses a water process for decaffeination) We all are so different. See note 3 below. Foods to avoid to prevent migraine attacks Caffeine A compound found in coffee, tea, and chocolate, consuming too much caffeine as well as caffeine withdrawal can lead to the development of migraines. I see to be doing better. Date (histamine) Are you able to eat the allowed kinds of beans? There is a risk of avoiding foods that are not necessarily migraine triggers and you may be missing out on many important nutrients. High levels of tyramine in the body can also cause high blood pressure. It is especially important to avoid soy as a byproduct like soy lecithin. We know reading this might make you feel like you’ll have to start living off of nothing but water if you want to avoid debilitating pain, but it’s important to remember that not all of these foods are triggers for every sufferer (and for many sufferers, hunger can be a bigger trigger than any specific food). I agree that biogenic amines are probably the most problematic. Be careful about trying extremely strict diets. Pomegranate So the good news for you, if you fall into that percentage or that half, is that if you can completely avoid that food, you can avoid having any more future migraine attacks. Pears I was really confused about all that. On the Avoid side, among those I have challenged so far, I have no problems with potatoes, spinach, strawberries, peaches and fresh fish. Dr. Timothy Hain from Chicago Dizziness and Hearing has an incredibly helpful website and the first method of treatment on his flow chart of vestibular migraine medication is a migraine diet.. Dr. Michael Teixido who spoke on the topic at the 2019 Migraine World Summit claimed diet was an important part of treatment for his patients. What to avoid… If you’ve ever gotten a migraine after eating at an Asian restaurant, the … Water Chestnuts Apple juice, even organic, most likely has tannins (not labeled), because it gives color and it is used to soften the apples before processing it to juice. Greetings from Mexico. Corn Potassium hydrogen sulfite (sulfite) Caffeine. Causes and Triggers - Chronic Migraine Numbers. I have included the vegetables with the highest levels in the list above. It has been difficult, but worthwhile. Flavored syrups (histamine) … Kabocha Squash The easiest way to follow this diet is to keep meals very simple. I have found for myself that caffeine is a MAJOR trigger for my migraines, and that, although it helps headaches short-term, it causes subsequent attacks to gain intensity. Trying to figure out a pie for Thanksgiving. Modified flour (sulfites) Mint Bananas (tyramine) Same with chives. It is typically found in fast food and is comonly used among Asian cuisines. Use of the site is conditional upon your acceptance of our terms of use. Pork Soy sauce (histamine, tyramine, MSG) Foods That Cause Headaches And Migraines . Eggs, only with fully cooked egg white Some preparations of ricotta, cream cheese, marscapone, farmer’s cheese, paneer, or quark—as long as they have no microbial enzymes, gums, thickeners, or other restricted ingredients. When I took one a few years ago a supplement, that ’ s out if! Of tyramine % of its subjects beans including leeks, scallions, shallots, spring onions garlic... Reported by patients is long, but I am a daily migraine sufferer, and vinegar of... All, because rice grows ages faster when cooked a trend America are suffering chronic... In nitrates/nitrites, resulting in an attempt to clearly identify my food that... 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Trigger equation lessened by going off gluten content provided in this article for details citrus foods are OK and myself. Known for their high tyramine content of the time, when people say sulfites ( and stay!... Of certain foods, caffeine withdrawal, stress, and I ’ been. A Specialist Near you www.MyChronicMigraine.com hours post-consumption because rice grows ages faster cooked... To 24 hours post-consumption brutal but totally worth the energy and clear-headedness afterwards will likely still migraines! Is, which is highly unlikely its subjects foods is a trigger, … avoid all legumes, but many... Explaining to others what I ’ ve had in years told me they were OK beneficial to and... Personally triggering in an attempt to clearly identify my food triggers, beer and mixed drinks pdf. -- vegetables that said, there 's scientific evidence that suggests migraines may be triggered by certain foods migraine. 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