Review: The Headache Prevention Cookbook.
Updated September 10, 2014.
A full review of this book can be found HERE.
Headache Triggers
Stress, lack of sleep, bright lights, weather changes, and strong odors are all potential headache triggers. But what many people, including many doctors, don't realize is that some of the most common causes of headaches are ordinary foods that most of us eat every day. Avoiding those so-called food triggers can be one of the most effective and least invasive ways to treat headaches, without the risk of side effects and allergies (not to mention the cost) associated with the use of medications.
In fact, by just following an appropriate headache-prevention diet, you may be able to get rid of most or all of your headaches!
You may still need to take medication for your pain. But medications have side effects especially when they are taken too frequently. Indeed, one of the most frustrating things about treating headache patients is that they tend to be more sensitive to medications and experience more side effects than people without headaches. Whenever possible, it is ideal to be able to treat headaches without resorting to the use of medication. This is where diet modification is useful.
Identifying Troublesome Foods
Not every headache sufferer is sensitive to food triggers. The first step before undertaking any regimen is to see a doctor and determine if there is any underlying condition that may be causing your headaches.
But a significant percentage of sufferers are affected by food, and I see it every day in my practice. Unfortunately, there is no physical sign or blood test that will tell you if some of your headaches are caused by food. And if you're not paying very close attention, you may not notice a pattern even if it's there. For that reason, I recommend that every headache sufferer try diet modification, at least temporarily. To discover if your diet is contributing to your headaches, you'll need to start with what doctors call an "elimination diet," in which you will try to eliminate all potentially troublesome foods.
You can follow an elimination diet by using the recipes in this book and by creating your own recipes that avoid foods which can trigger headaches. You should avoid these foods for at least two months and record whether your headaches improve during this time.
The Headache Prevention Cookbook Part 3: Excerpt from The Headache Prevention Cookbook A full review of this book can be found HERE.
Headache Triggers
Stress, lack of sleep, bright lights, weather changes, and strong odors are all potential headache triggers. But what many people, including many doctors, don't realize is that some of the most common causes of headaches are ordinary foods that most of us eat every day. Avoiding those so-called food triggers can be one of the most effective and least invasive ways to treat headaches, without the risk of side effects and allergies (not to mention the cost) associated with the use of medications. In fact, by just following an appropriate headache-prevention diet, you may be able to get rid of most or all of your headaches!
You may still need to take medication for your pain. But medications have side effects especially when they are taken too frequently. Indeed, one of the most frustrating things about treating headache patients is that they tend to be more sensitive to medications and experience more side effects than people without headaches. Whenever possible, it is ideal to be able to treat headaches without resorting to the use of medication. This is where diet modification is useful.
Identifying Troublesome Foods
Not every headache sufferer is sensitive to food triggers. The first step before undertaking any regimen is to see a doctor and determine if there is any underlying condition that may be causing your headaches.
But a significant percentage of sufferers are affected by food, and I see it every day in my practice. Unfortunately, there is no physical sign or blood test that will tell you if some of your headaches are caused by food. And if you're not paying very close attention, you may not notice a pattern even if it's there. For that reason, I recommend that every headache sufferer try diet modification, at least temporarily. To discover if your diet is contributing to your headaches, you'll need to start with what doctors call an "elimination diet," in which you will try to eliminate all potentially troublesome foods.
You can follow an elimination diet by using the recipes in this book and by creating your own recipes that avoid foods which can trigger headaches. You should avoid these foods for at least two months and record whether your headaches improve during this time.
A full review of this book can be found HERE.
Headache Triggers
Stress, lack of sleep, bright lights, weather changes, and strong odors are all potential headache triggers. But what many people, including many doctors, don't realize is that some of the most common causes of headaches are ordinary foods that most of us eat every day. Avoiding those so-called food triggers can be one of the most effective and least invasive ways to treat headaches, without the risk of side effects and allergies (not to mention the cost) associated with the use of medications.
In fact, by just following an appropriate headache-prevention diet, you may be able to get rid of most or all of your headaches!
You may still need to take medication for your pain. But medications have side effects especially when they are taken too frequently. Indeed, one of the most frustrating things about treating headache patients is that they tend to be more sensitive to medications and experience more side effects than people without headaches. Whenever possible, it is ideal to be able to treat headaches without resorting to the use of medication. This is where diet modification is useful.
- Diet modification worked for Mary P. After stopping her chronic pain medicines, we were able to identify many food triggers that she had previously been unaware of: Chinese food (even without MSG), cured pork products, aged cheeses, bananas, citrus fruits, and peanut butter cookies. Each of these foods caused a severe headache within hours of consumption. Once Mary identified her headache triggers, she modified her diet to avoid them. Her headaches became less frequent, and her relationships with her husband and children improved dramatically. Mary is just one person who has been helped by eliminating trigger foods from her diet. There are many others:
- Sharon M. had daily headaches for about a year. The symptoms were typical of chronic tension-type headaches: a "tight band" around her head that was fairly constant and usually not associated with nausea or vomiting. After ruling out any serious cause of Sharon's headaches, I put her on the headache-prevention diet. Sharon kept a detailed record of everything she ate. (She is a bit compulsive, and in this case, it worked to her advantage.) When I next saw her two months later, she had experienced only a few headaches. Then, after slowly reintroducing the foods known to be common headache triggers, Sharon identified freshly baked bagels, pickles, chocolate, and citrus as some of her headache triggers. As a result, her life was, in her words, "totally changed."
- Trisha P., age fifty-nine, suffered from headaches since she was eight. When Trisha first came to see me, she complained of frequent headaches and was taking too much pain medicine, which can cause "rebound" headaches. I discontinued her medication, and within a few short weeks, Trisha's headaches became much less frequent. To see if we could eliminate the rest of her headaches, I suggested that she avoid certain foods. After doing so for a few weeks, Trisha gradually began adding them back to her diet, one at a time, to try to identify the offenders. She reintroduced cheeses, artificial sweeteners, and pickles without any problems. One night, Trisha decided to have a piece of ice-cream cake with chocolate sprinkles on it. Seven hours later, she awakened with a migraine. Three days later, she ate a chocolate candy bar and developed a migraine within four hours. Since cutting chocolate out of her diet, Trisha has been doing fine, with only an occasional headache.
Identifying Troublesome Foods
Not every headache sufferer is sensitive to food triggers. The first step before undertaking any regimen is to see a doctor and determine if there is any underlying condition that may be causing your headaches.
But a significant percentage of sufferers are affected by food, and I see it every day in my practice. Unfortunately, there is no physical sign or blood test that will tell you if some of your headaches are caused by food. And if you're not paying very close attention, you may not notice a pattern even if it's there. For that reason, I recommend that every headache sufferer try diet modification, at least temporarily. To discover if your diet is contributing to your headaches, you'll need to start with what doctors call an "elimination diet," in which you will try to eliminate all potentially troublesome foods.
You can follow an elimination diet by using the recipes in this book and by creating your own recipes that avoid foods which can trigger headaches. You should avoid these foods for at least two months and record whether your headaches improve during this time.
The Headache Prevention Cookbook Part 3: Excerpt from The Headache Prevention Cookbook A full review of this book can be found HERE.
Headache Triggers
Stress, lack of sleep, bright lights, weather changes, and strong odors are all potential headache triggers. But what many people, including many doctors, don't realize is that some of the most common causes of headaches are ordinary foods that most of us eat every day. Avoiding those so-called food triggers can be one of the most effective and least invasive ways to treat headaches, without the risk of side effects and allergies (not to mention the cost) associated with the use of medications. In fact, by just following an appropriate headache-prevention diet, you may be able to get rid of most or all of your headaches!
You may still need to take medication for your pain. But medications have side effects especially when they are taken too frequently. Indeed, one of the most frustrating things about treating headache patients is that they tend to be more sensitive to medications and experience more side effects than people without headaches. Whenever possible, it is ideal to be able to treat headaches without resorting to the use of medication. This is where diet modification is useful.
- Diet modification worked for Mary P. After stopping her chronic pain medicines, we were able to identify many food triggers that she had previously been unaware of: Chinese food (even without MSG), cured pork products, aged cheeses, bananas, citrus fruits, and peanut butter cookies. Each of these foods caused a severe headache within hours of consumption. Once Mary identified her headache triggers, she modified her diet to avoid them. Her headaches became less frequent, and her relationships with her husband and children improved dramatically. Mary is just one person who has been helped by eliminating trigger foods from her diet. There are many others:
- Sharon M. had daily headaches for about a year. The symptoms were typical of chronic tension-type headaches: a "tight band" around her head that was fairly constant and usually not associated with nausea or vomiting. After ruling out any serious cause of Sharon's headaches, I put her on the headache-prevention diet. Sharon kept a detailed record of everything she ate. (She is a bit compulsive, and in this case, it worked to her advantage.) When I next saw her two months later, she had experienced only a few headaches. Then, after slowly reintroducing the foods known to be common headache triggers, Sharon identified freshly baked bagels, pickles, chocolate, and citrus as some of her headache triggers. As a result, her life was, in her words, "totally changed."
- Trisha P., age fifty-nine, suffered from headaches since she was eight. When Trisha first came to see me, she complained of frequent headaches and was taking too much pain medicine, which can cause "rebound" headaches. I discontinued her medication, and within a few short weeks, Trisha's headaches became much less frequent. To see if we could eliminate the rest of her headaches, I suggested that she avoid certain foods. After doing so for a few weeks, Trisha gradually began adding them back to her diet, one at a time, to try to identify the offenders. She reintroduced cheeses, artificial sweeteners, and pickles without any problems. One night, Trisha decided to have a piece of ice-cream cake with chocolate sprinkles on it. Seven hours later, she awakened with a migraine. Three days later, she ate a chocolate candy bar and developed a migraine within four hours. Since cutting chocolate out of her diet, Trisha has been doing fine, with only an occasional headache.
Identifying Troublesome Foods
Not every headache sufferer is sensitive to food triggers. The first step before undertaking any regimen is to see a doctor and determine if there is any underlying condition that may be causing your headaches.
But a significant percentage of sufferers are affected by food, and I see it every day in my practice. Unfortunately, there is no physical sign or blood test that will tell you if some of your headaches are caused by food. And if you're not paying very close attention, you may not notice a pattern even if it's there. For that reason, I recommend that every headache sufferer try diet modification, at least temporarily. To discover if your diet is contributing to your headaches, you'll need to start with what doctors call an "elimination diet," in which you will try to eliminate all potentially troublesome foods.
You can follow an elimination diet by using the recipes in this book and by creating your own recipes that avoid foods which can trigger headaches. You should avoid these foods for at least two months and record whether your headaches improve during this time.
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