If you have been plagued by chronic migraines, my guess is that you have tried just about everything to relieve them. There are medications, relaxation techniques, and diets that can all have a modest effect on controlling migraines, but what can we do to ELIMINATE migraines? While the exact cause of them is unknown, it is my belief that chronic inflammation plays a key role in the likelihood of experiencing migraines. Like many other health conditions, chronic inflammation lays a foundation for pain and disordered function. In working to limit inflammation, many people see a reduction or even complete reversal of symptoms such as joint pain, sinus issues, allergies, and headaches/migraines. The removal of inflammation can even help to battle cancer, atherosclerosis, hay fever, and arthritis.
The Role of Inflammation
Inflammation is a biological response in which the body works to protect itself against infection, injury, and foreign substances such as bacteria and viruses. It usually involves an increase of blood to an area and when acute, is accompanied by acute pain. This is an important process within the body, without which we would not be able to fight off infection and disease. Problems with inflammation begin to arise when it becomes chronic and generalized. When there is continued inflammation, the body may even begin to attack itself, leading to auto-immune disorders.
The most common symptoms of inflammation are joint pain, joint stiffness, swelling, and can be associated with fever, chills, fatigue, muscle pain, and headaches (migraines!). The problem with general inflammation is that the root cause is not always apparent. It is my opinion, however, that there is one BIG underlying cause that is fundamental to our heath which is often overlooked: diet.
Why Diet Matters
Why is the evaluation of one’s diet not ALWAYS the first step in any health-related issue? We know that the food we eat is manifested in how we look, feel, and perform. We know that food can change how our body functions, how our genes are expressed, and how our cells interact with one another. So let’s start with diet and see what happens. As stated above, inflammation plays a big role in all types of issues, but today we will look at migraines as an example.
When you ingest a food item, your body must break it down, and then absorb it, to make use of its energy. So it is not so much about what you eat as it is about what your body absorbs. This concept is key to understanding the dietary influence on inflammation, because it is your body’s ability to use the food that you give it that can lead to problems.
In my experience, there are a few items that most commonly lead to inflammatory issues: grains, beans, and dairy. Each one for different reasons, but when it comes down to it, there are a lot of people that have a hard time digesting them. When your body has a hard time digesting a food, it leads to inflammation in your gut. When there is inflammation in the gut, a number of issues can arise including bloating, constipation, and something called “leaky gut” where some of those food particles make it through your intestinal wall, even though your body does not want them. This is where chronic inflammation can arise, because now you have a steady supply of foreign invaders in your body, ramping up your inflammatory response.
The Elimination Approach
If you are dealing with any of the health concerns mentioned in this article, it may be worth your time to play around with your diet. While you may not have issues with all grain, beans, or dairy, I would be very surprised if at least ONE of these was not helping to fuel the fire. I recommend approaching this problem through the use of an elimination plan. There are two ways to do this: 1) Cut out all potentially problematic foods for 30 days, then reintroduce one at a time, or 2) Cut out one food item for 30 days, then reintroduce and see how you feel. If it doesn’t agree with your stomach, leave it out and move onto the next item. If it’s okay, leave it in.
The three groups that you will want to play with are grains, beans, and dairy. If it is migraines that you suffer from, I would look first at wheat (bread, pasta, many processed foods and sauces) and peanuts (technically a legume). These two items are most commonly associated with migraines, so start there and see how you feel after 30 days. If your migraines are gone, great! Enjoy your migraine-free days, though I would recommend playing around with the other food items as well just to see. Many people have dairy issues, and other beans and grains (rice, corn, oats, etc.) can also be problematic for some.
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