Headaches and food sensitivities?

Question

My 21 y/o daughter gets chronic migraine headaches. I believe they are food-related, due to family history. The problem is: migraines are really hard to diagnose. Food sensitivities can last a couple of days, overlap, etc. She has been seen by numerous types of docs: Neurologist, Rhuemotologist, Allergist, General. I hoped the allergist could help us but they said they only test for standard allergies, and not intradermally for foods (family member tested this way, dr. retired). She has been on a candida diet but I don't know for sure if she really followed it. She has removed milk from her diet temporarily. She has: migraines, problems with acne, irritability due to the headaches, rashes from certain metals, Raynaud's syndrome, acid reflux. Any ideas? Any ideas for finding a DR. who tests intradermally who also has a medical degree? Other ideas? She agreed to keep a temp. food diary. I am concerned about her liver from too many pain killers - pains in upper right back.

Answer 1

Homeopathic Remedies for Common Allergies :-

Allergic to dust, smoke,strong perfumes Histamine 1M weekly (3 Doses)

Allergic to bread, acidic food Nat Mur 30 or 200, 4 hourly

Allergic to beer, malt liquor Kali Bich 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to dust(asthma), Pothos Foe 6X or 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to warm boiled milk, fatty pork (diarrhoea), Sepia 30 or 200, 4 hourly

Allergic to milk Magnesia Carb 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to cod liver oil Hepar Sulph 30, 6 hourly

Allergic to aspirin, bad liquor, salt butter, bad eggs, poultry items Carvo Veg 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to antibiotics Sulphur 30 or 200, 6 hourly(3 Doses)

Allergic to castor oil Bryonia Album 30, 6 hourly

Allergic to coffee Nux Vomica 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to heat Apis Mel 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to cold drinks, fruits, rotten food, iodine Arsenic Album 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to dampness Dulcamara 30 or 200, 4 hourly

Allergic to smell of flowers(asthma) Ailanthus G, 6X or 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to sweats, fatty meat, onion Thuja Occ 30 or 200, 6 hourly (3 Doses)

Allergic to sugar Argentum Nit 30 or 200, 6 hourly(3 Doses)

Allergic to rice Tellurium 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to cabbage Petroleum 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to cheese Nitri spiritus dulcis Q or 30, 6 hourly

Allergic to cold milk Kali Iod 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to decayed vegetables, Carbo Animalis 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to unripe fruits, prunes, Rheum 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to veal Kali Nit 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to pastry; rich icecream, mixed food Pulsatilla 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to lemonade Selenium 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to indigestible food, tonque clean, constant nausea Ipecac 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to melons Zingiber 30, 4 hourly

Allergic to iodide of potassium, Aurum Met 30 or 200, 6 hourly

Allergic to sugar; bitter food Natrum Phos 6X or 30, 4 hourly

Incurrent remedy Psorinum 200 or 1M, fortnightly(3 Doses)

Allergic to vinegar; pickles, sour foods, acids Lachesis 200, weekly (3 Doses)

Allergic to strawberries Oxalic Acid 30 or 200, weekly (3 Doses)

Allergic to oysters Lycopodium 200, 6 hourly.

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Allergic Bronchitis - Inflammation of mucuos membranesof the bronchial tubes due to altered reaction incited by an antigen or allegen is called Allergic Bronchitis :-

After preventive vaccines (Triple antigen, polio oral vaccine or B.C.G) Drosera 1M (never give in acute stage) fortnightly (3 Doses)

After vaccination against small pox Thuja Occ 200 or 1M, 10 min (3 Doses)

After vaccination against Diphtheria Diphtherinum 1M, 10 min( 3 Doses)

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Allergic Rhinitis :-

Allergic to dust, smoke, perfumes and sprays etc,usually of the naso pharynx which leads to sneezing and blockage of nose and then cough Histamine 1M, weekly (3 Doses)

Allergic to dust, coryza with profuse nasal discharge and sneezing in the evening, dull frontal headache; lachrynation with itching in eyes Justicia Adhatoda 30, 4 hourly

Profuse, watery coryza; itching to posterior chamber of nose Solanum Lycopersicum 30, 4 hourly.

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If your symptoms are not given here consult a Homeopathic Practitioner for constitutional treatment or post the patients symptoms on detail exactly the way the patient feels them.

Take the remedy which is similar to your symptoms. No side effects or complications if taken as directed, please do not exceed the given dosage and under any circumstances do not try to mix any remedies and avoid Chocolates, Mints, Coffee, Red Meat, Alcoholic and Carbonated drinks, Spicy Rich Food while taking any Homeopathic remedies, and keep the medicines away from direct sunlight, heat strong smells and perfumes and do not store them in the fridge.
Curing without any side effects or Complications Thats the Beauty of Homeopathic Medicine (Cures Par Excellence)

Take Care and God Bless You !

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

My friend had migraines for years and could not understand
why. No one could tell her what was wrong. Then she
had an endoscopy done (a long tube like scope is placed
into the mouth and goes down into the esophagus and
stomach area and the doctor can observe it...you are
sedated when it is done) They found out her esophagus
wasn't open very much and they stretched it out. Her
migraines went away. She saw a gastroenterologist
for this. This is just a suggestion.

Over the counter pain medication taken in excess can
cause liver damage. She should only be taking pain
medications prescribed by her doctor.

Hope this is of some help.

Answer 4

Has your daughter been tested for an allergy to wheat, rye and barley - specifically a gluten/gliadin sensitivity that causes Celiac Disease?

You may need to see an 'alternative' health care provider for proper and knowledgeable food sensitivity guidance. Most Naturopathic Physicians, many Chiropractors, most Certified Clinical Nutritionists (C.C.N.) and a few medical doctors (trained in either Functional Medicine or Environmental Medicine) can help your daughter.

Overall, your daughter's collection of health problems strongly suggest a chronic gut problem. This could range from celiac disease (very likely), to other food allergies, to intestinal dysbiosis, to small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), to hypochlorhydria, or even a leaky gut syndrome (intestinal hyperpermeability). The types of doctors I suggested above can assist in evaluating these potential causes of your daughter's suffering.

Best wishes and good luck.

p.s. you may also find it worthwhile to learn a little about these issues. A couple of excellent books are available: 1) "No More Heartburn" by Sherry Rogers, M.D. and 2) "Digestive Wellness" by Elizabeth Lipski, M.S., C.C.N. Both books are well written, heavily documented with scientific references, and offer powerful insights into chronic health problems like your daughter is experiencing. The books are available at Amazon.com.

Answer 5

Migraines and headaches are significant public health problems, and their symptomatologies have been positively linked to diet. Conventional care of migraines consists of using a variety of drugs. For the last 36 years we have been working with physicians helping people treat migraines without drugs. Doing food allergy and sensitivity testing for delayed food reactions is indeed a key component to offering cure to migraine patient suffers. Discover the link between what you eat and how you feel by watching our short animation here: http://www.immunolabs.com

Answer 6

All of the syptoms could be caused by food sensitivies. I am sensitive and have found that elimating glutens (wheat and processed foods) from my diet has done a great job of eliminating symptoms. Read up on celiac disease (gluten senstivity), check out NEAT (a system to treat food sensitivity practiced by docs of Chinese medicine or chiros).
And yes, avoid all those pain-killers -- particuarly tylenol and it's generic forms that is very bad for the liver.

Answer 7

The medical profession are not that keen on diagnosing food intolerances, because if you can get rid of a disease just by what you eat, what's in it for them? And most food intolerances don't show up on allergy tests, because they are not strictly speaking "allergies" - they affect you in ways that don't necessarily involve the immune system.

The best way to find what you're intolerant of is to keep a food diary over a period of at least several weeks.
See: http://www.the-health-site.com/articles/index.php?article=122 for how to do this.

Migraine is often caused by food intolerances of one sort or another. Common causes include: oranges, chocolate, gluten. Rheumatoid arthritis is also often linked to gluten, as are some problems with mental health and numerous other problems. If you suspect gluten, try the quiz "Are You Gluten Intolerant" which you will find here:
http://www.glutenfreedietbook.com/factsheet

Answer 8

You may want to check into York Labs or Immunolabs for testing. The ELISA test will help you out a lot, as well as the CAP-RAST test which is a very sensitive IgE allergen test. Immunolabs does it and it tests for 31 foods. Its the only blood test that showed my IgE reactions to my food allergies.
http://www.yorktest.com/
http://www.immunolabs.com/ (Immunolabs can be done by any doctor, or you can contact their site to find a doctor to do it. It can be pricey if your insurance doesn't cover it, but its invaluable.. esp. the IgE food test)

Top migraine causing food allergies are milk, chocolate, and corn. Corn is extremely hard to remove from the diet, so I'd suspect this one first. Its also known to not properly appear on tests.
http://www.cornallergens.com/list/corn-allergen-list.php

Its also possible that the drugs are also causing just as many problems as they're solving. As you said she has acne. Does she also have any body swelling? This may appear as pudgy fingers or general pudginess rather than toned muscles or lean fingers. Allergies to pain medications is fairly common.

She honestly sounds a lot like me prior to my food allergy discoveries. Now that I avoid my allergens, I have no problems with acne, reflux, candida, migraines, irritability, or rashes.

Even mild food allergies can cause these kinds of problems, so double check the results from your allergist visits, was there any foods that even showed the remotest chance of a reaction which her doctor said was probably inconsequential.

You may also want to try a rotation diet, or removing certain foods for a week, then trialing them. This will take a lot of work and commitment on your daughters part, as everything she eats is going to have to be home cooked to make sure that it is free of other influences. The removing certain foods for a week (7 days) is probably the easiest, which I'd start with removing all grains (no wheat, barley, rye, oats, corn, rice). It would be a plain meat & veggies diet, but it would help rule things out. Then after that week, I'd add in one grain at a time (1 per 3 days) and watch for reactions. After grains, I'd try milk, cabbage family (cruciferous veggies), nightshades, parsley family, melon/squash family, then meats.

Though most likely I'd say it would be a grain or milk product.

Reactions on reintroducing can be anything from acne, swelling, headaches, reflux/digestive, to hives/anaphylaxis. So make sure she has liquid benadryl handy when trialing a food she's been avoiding.

Also if she hasn't been tested yet, you may want to get her tested for celiac. Its pretty easy nowadays to rule out.

Answer 9

I think she needs to see a chiropractor. sounds like theres more going but its a GREAT start! A good chiropractor will also help her get the help she needs with the things he cannot help.