1 Man’s Migraine Triggers Caferg(n)ot

As an ex-life-long migraine sufferer I pass along Fox’s “Foods that cause headaches: Choose your cheese, wine, coffee & chocolate carefully.” Recall Chicago’s Diamond Headache Clinic saved by life with “The List” of triggers.

Of course, migraine “triggers are very individualistic,” says Dr. Vincent Martin, director of the Headache & Facial Pain Center at U of Cincinnati’s College of Medicine. “… which means foods that [are now known to] trigger a headache in one person may not trigger a headache in another person.” Martin told Fox, “common triggers include alcoholic beverages, artificial sweeteners such as aspartame & sucralose, processed meats like hot dogs, bacon & sausage – and citrus fruits.”

Tell me about it. Decades ago, I was getting up to 4 massive debilitating migraines per week and, frankly, felt my very life slipping away. My boss at work finally suggested consulting with the Diamond Headache Clinic, which at that time was doing pioneer work in tying migraines to foods. They sent me a list of “suspect” triggers that, in addition to the one above, included MSG & nitrates aka preservatives prevalent at the time, especially in frozen or fast foods & dry cereals. Following the clinic’s instructions, I overnight went to one or two migraines per month, until they stopped entirely as I reached my forties. In short, I was poisoning myself with several of the trigger foods I had loved. Ironically, while “caffeine” is often a trigger for some folks as mentioned in most “trigger” lists, it’s also a saver in a key migraine med called “cafergot” and even in today’s Excedrin Migraine, a cocktail capsule consisting of acetaminophen, aspirin & … caffeine … that always worked wonders for me in a pinch. To your health!

Davd Soul