Research Report: Food Allergies Cause Migraines

This week a fantastic study came out of Mexico on the relationship between IgG food allergies and migraine headaches. (If you want to learn more about IgG food allergies, please refer to my website at http://www.ibstreatmentcenter.com/3_a_2.htm.)

The study noted that some 18% of the population suffers from migraine headaches. In this study 56 migraine sufferers were tested for elevated IgG antibodies to food, a test not routinely performed by most doctors or headache specialists. A control group of non-migraine sufferers was also tested.

In the study, researchers found a significant difference in the levels of IgG antibodies between the migraine sufferers and the control group. But more importantly, when the food allergens were eliminated from the diet, the migraines resolved and these people no longer needed medications. I was very glad to see that they took this last step and actually eliminated the foods from the diet. I've seen other studies where they stopped with the blood test and didn't apply the information.

I also noted that they called this a food allergy. This is appropriate, since this is a case in which the immune system is attacking the food. That definitely fits the definition of allergy.

The researchers very politely conclude that "According to the results obtained, serum IgG antibodies to common food should be investigated in patients with migraine." I should say so. They have just suggested that most migraines, if not all, can be prevented by testing for IgG food allergies and eliminating the appropriate foods from the diet. That would make a profound difference with a tremendous number of people.

This improvement was no surprise to those of us at our clinic, but it was nice to finally see a formal study of it. We frequently see people with migraines, with or without digestive problems, who report that their headaches have resolved after the elimination of their hidden food allergens. You may also be interested to know that this is also true for other types of headaches.

You may have noticed that this study did not come out of the U.S. This is a recurring theme with research on hidden food allergies. And you may wonder why this isn't big news here in the U.S., and why doctors aren't jumping all over themselves to utilize this new information? Both are very good questions. Maybe even more interesting, this isn't the first study to demonstrate such a relationship. More information and studies are included on our Center for Food Allergy website at http://www.centerforfoodallergies.com/Headaches.htm.

The study is titled "Food allergy mediated by IgG antibodies associated with migraine in adults." It was performed by Arroyave Hernandez, et al. The link to the abstract for this study as well as many others is available at http://www.innatehealthfoundation.org/5_c.htm