If you suffer from migraines, you will be interested to know that your diet may be to blame and small changes could help you significantly. Many sufferers are unaware of what causes their intense headaches and according to the National Headache Foundation there are many possible triggers including diet, activity, environment, medications and hormones. Thirteen percent of the population experiences symptoms of migraine such as throbbing pain that is usually located on one side of the head and is accompanied by nausea and sensitivity to light and sound.

One client in her 60s had suffered migraine headaches for most of her life. Her symptoms were so disabling that she often spent a day or more sleeping in a completely dark room just to ease the intensity. She never suspected that a little known allergen called tyramine might be the culprit.

While eliminating dairy products from her diet, she discovered that her headaches had disappeared, until one day when she added a bit of cheese to her salad. Shortly after eating the salad she was lying in bed with a painful attack.

Tyramine is found in foods such as aged cheese, nuts and red wine. It tends to be more highly concentrated in fermented and aged foods. The National Headache Foundation reports, “Foods that contain tyramine may trigger headaches… by facilitating a chain reaction which results in selective cerebral vasoconstriction followed by rebound dilation of the cranial vessels (the most common cause of the throbbing headache pain).” The article may be found at www.headaches.org/consumer/topicsheets/tyramine.html. Sufferers seem to be most sensitive to aged cheese.

While migraines may be caused by a number of different factors, it’s quite possible that this is the irritant affecting you. It’s certainly worth experimenting to find out if changing your diet will reduce or eliminate your symptoms. A list of foods containing tyramine may be found here: my.webmd.com/content/article/83/97899.htm

It’s unfortunate that my client unnecessarily suffered from migraines for a large part of her life. The great news is that she has eliminated a recurring nuisance.