Dietary tyramine intake has been linked to migraine headaches, leading many sufferers to restrict foods high in tyramine. Reports on the tyramine-migraine link have been both affirmed and denied.

Dietary tyramine intake has been linked to migraine headaches, leading many sufferers to restrict foods high in tyramine.  Reports on the tyramine-migraine link have been both affirmed and denied.  In general, studies have shown a link between tyramine and migraines. If you suffer from the debilitating effects of migraine headaches, you may be willing to try anything, including limiting certain trigger foods in an attempt to keep the headaches at bay.

Migraine headache pain is often described as a severe pulsing or throbbing pain in an area of the head. Often people describe a pulsing behind the eyes. It is often accompanied by sensitivity to light and sound, nausea, and vomiting.  For some, visual disturbances appearing as flashing lights or temporary loss of vision occur just before the migraine.

Women suffer from migraines three times more than men. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, migraines were once linked to the dilation and constriction of blood vessels in the head, but scientists now believe that migraines are caused by inherited abnormalities in genes that control activities in certain cells in the brain.

Restricting your diet isn’t considered a treatment for curing migraines, but identifying the foods that have triggered symptoms and then avoiding those foods may help some people prevent migraine attacks. If you think foods may be worsening your migraine symptoms, consult your doctor as a first step. Trying to eliminate all possible trigger foods is generally not recommended because of the large number of possible triggers. The diet would be too restrictive and difficult to follow ending up in frustration and failure.

Keep a food journal to identify any food triggers. The journal should list everything you eat every day and at what time of day. The appearance of any symptoms should be noted. If food triggers are found, selectively avoiding only those foods may help.  Skipping meals can also be a trigger for some people, so be sure to eat regular, well-balanced meals.

There is an enzyme, tyramine that has been linked to migraine attacks. Dr Edda Hanington (British Medical Journal, 2:550, 1967) observed a headache reaction to cheese eaten by patients treated for depression with certain drugs. The drugs, monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, inhibit an enzyme that normally metabolizes tyramine, the migraine provoking chemical found in cheese and other foods. MAO inhibitors taken in chance combination with a meal of cheese can also cause an acute rise in blood pressure by releasing the neurotransmitter norepinephrine, another reason for headache symptoms. It is postulated that patients with dietary migraine are sensitive to tyramine-containing foods because of an inherent deficiency of MAO in their liver and blood, and an inability to metabolize tyramine. The elimination of the offending food and chemical from the diet should prevent or lessen the number and severity of migraine attacks.

The list of foods, beverages, and additives thought to trigger or exacerbate migraine symptoms in some people includes:
 
Cheese
Bananas
Chocolate
Citrus fruits
Hot dogs
Monosodium glutamate
Aspartame
Fatty foods
Ice cream
Caffeine withdrawal
Alcoholic drinks, especially red wine and beer
Monosodium glutamate (MSG)

Tyramine is found in higher concentrations in foods that have been fermented, such as:

Aged or blue cheese
Yogurt
Smoked, cured or pickled meat or fish
Red wine or beer
Soy sauce, miso, tempeh

As stated above, do not try to eliminate all offenders from your diet overnight but do keep a list of what you eat and try to determine what is causing the migraines and then eliminate that food or beverage. 

By Christina Leon, Staff Writer