Foods That Trigger Migraine

What is migraine?

Migraine is caused by the constricting and dilating of blood vessels on one side of the brain. A migraine attack with throbbing headache on one side of the head may last up to two days.

Migraine can be of two types –

Common and Classical

    • Common migraine is a slowly developing severe headache, lasting from a few hours to two days and it is accompanied with nausea.
    • Classical migraine is preceded by an aura, which takes the form of a visual disturbance later. The symptoms include a temporary loss of vision, focusing problems, blind spots, speech problems, nausea and vomiting.

Here are some chemicals in food that trigger migraine:-

Tyramine – containing foods leads to dilation of the nerves in the brain, resulting in a rush of blood, which triggers the migraine. Another reason for migraine can be chocolates or the caffeine present in chocolate. Alcoholic beverages contain tyramine and histamine, which provoke migraines.

Nitrate is an important portion of our daily diet and nitrites are formed by the reduction of nitrates. Nitrites are responsible for migraine attacks along with flushing of the face and neck. Moreover, nitrites can also cause low oxygen levels in the blood, which gives a slate grey color to the skin

Ice cream headache is a pain generally located above the forehead or behind the eyes. This kind of migraine-attack is caused due to a reflex constriction of blood vessels around the head.

Those who are allergic to various foods like cow’s milk, eggs and wheat cereal, these foods may provoke headache in people susceptible to migraines.

The aspartame triggered migraine happens after consuming anything containing aspartame, which is found in artificial sweeteners like Sugar Free, Diet Coke etc.

Monosodium glutamate or the also known as MSG is commonly used in chinese restaurants and it has been linked to trigger migraine. Fasting leads to low blood sugar levels, which may trigger headaches in patients suffering from migraine.
Another common reason for migraine is stress that may act as a secondary cause in some situations.

Anti-migraine medications are drugs that are given to lower the risk of an intense migraine attack and even to reduce the severity of the pain once an attack begins.
There are four types of anti migraine medications commonly used to treat migraine attacks- ordinary painkillers, anti-inflammatory painkillers, anti-sickness medicines, and triptans. The anti-migraine medications probably work better than paracetamol to ease migraine and are easily available on the online pharmacy stores.
Migraine attacks may cause nausea as well as vomiting, which causes poor absorption of tablets into the body. It is quite usual to try different treatment options for migraine over a period of time but it is important to ascertain the right treatment.

Migraine is thought to be caused by the chemical imbalances in certain parts of the brain. The disequilibrium affect the blood vessels in the brain, first tightening and then widening them up. When the blood vessels widen, they affect the release of chemicals that increase sensitivity to pain and cause inflammation and swelling. The anti-migraine drugs work by correcting the imbalances and tightening the blood vessels.

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