The Migraine-Food Intolerance Connection

This piece of research came across the desks of one of the ND’s here at StoneTree that supports what we have all seen time and time again with our patients: food intolerances and migraines are related.

We’ve written about food intolerances many times before. When we eat foods that we are intolerant to, our immune systems see these foods as foes, not friends. The normal response to a foe by the immune system is to create inflammation in an effort to get rid of the threat.

This works very well when the threat is a virus or bacteria. It works less well when the threat is a food you eat every day. The threat is never eliminated–it just keeps showing up on your plate, day after day, and your body keeps fighting the fight.

Over time, the result is an accumulation of low-grade inflammation that can cause symptoms throughout the entire body. One of those places is the vasculature of the brain. Result: migraines.

Testing for food intolerance is an easy blood test. If you are suspect that foods are causing a problem for you, this time of year is a great time to do intolerance testing. Most extended health benefit plans will cover this lab test if done through your naturopathic doctor. (Curious about what a test looks like? You can find a sample here.)

 To learn more about food intolerance and other lab tests, book online, or call the clinic at 705-444-5331.