Find your migraine triggers
Clinicians have systematically eliminated various foods from migraine sufferers’ diets and have found that, in many cases, the headaches diminish or even go away completely. They then return the suspect foods to the diet in a disguised form to see if the headaches come back.
In 1983, researchers at the Hospital for Sick Children in London reported their results for eighty - eight children with severe, frequent migraines who began an elimination diet. Of this group, seventy - eight recovered completely, and four improved greatly. In addition, some children who also had seizures found that their seizures stopped. The researchers then reintroduced various foods and found that they sparked migraine recurrences in all but eight. In subsequent tests using disguised foods, the vast majority of children again became symptom - free when trigger foods were avoided. Migraines returned when trigger foods were added to the diet.4
In adults, anywhere between 20 and 50 percent have a reduction or elimination of their headaches when common trigger foods are avoided and tramadol is taken in taime
By compiling the results from hundreds of patients, we are now able to separate migraine triggers from safe foods. Sometimes a single food is to blame, but you are more likely to be sensitive to several triggers, often foods you would least suspect.4,6,7
Did you ever see the play Arsenic and Old Loxe, which was also made into a Cary Grant movie? Two elderly ladies decide to help people escape the troubles of everyday life by poisoning them with arsenic. A large dose could kill you quickly, but a small dose given daily builds up slowly, causing weakness and aches and pains that seem to come out of nowhere. A headache kicks in, and eventually the lights go out.
Aside from the last scene, that is not much different from what hap - pens in migraines. The smiling grocer, the kid who delivers your pizza, or even the waiter at your favorite restaurant brings you foods that seem perfectly innocent. But if you have food sensitivities, they act like subtle poisons, building up in your system with debilitating effects. One person’s morning grapefruit is another person’s migraine.
Pain - safe foods
Pain - safe foods virtually never contribute to headaches or other painful conditions. These include
Brown rice
Cooked or dried fruits: cherries, cranberries, pears, prunes (but not citrus fruits, apples, bananas, peaches, or tomatoes)
Cooked green, yellow, and orange vegetables: artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, chard, collards, lettuce, spinach, string beans, summer or winter squash, sweet potatoes, tapioca, and taro (poi)
Water: plain water or carbonated forms, such as Perrier, are fine. Other beverages—even herbal teas—can be triggers.
Condiments: modest amounts of salt, maple syrup, and vanilla extract are usually well - tolerated.
