Caffeine restriction and Migraine Diets

Of course there may be hundreds out there for all I know but I was surprised to find a recipe, using a blender, for ‘home-made’ Oat Milk at www.shipton-mill.com if anybody’s on an economy drive.

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Oatly Milkadamia

Bit of an update. I really tried to start the John Hopkins Diet late August after a Brie and Horseradish sandwich seemed to bring on dizziness within 30 minutes but rather fell off the wagon a few times since. I’ve now got into the no more than 2 teas per day routine, and generally this does seem to have stopped my mild but constant rear head pressure and any ear pressure has gone too. Tinnitus also, in fact my ears are, generally totally clear and hearing perfect as pre-MAV. I say ‘generally’ because yesterday and part of the day before I’ve had a ‘woozy’ light-headed head, another unusual symptom for me. Light-headed is another first. It is so difficult to establish triggers. Trouble is, when you feel better, you push the boundaries, so was it a food trigger or was it caused by something else, in my case, hanging washing on the washing line in the conservatory which is high or bending low to put on shoes instead of sitting down to do it, or was it the Lemon in the new Lemon & Ginger Teabag which was far too lemony. I’d never thought of citrus as a trigger for me but … I remember reading a Daily Mail article in which a Mr Selvadurai, ENT at the Lister Hospital in London said sometimes just dropping lemon from their morning drink of water stopped some women experiencing migraine which makes you think. Perhaps really one needs to just live in a bubble until one’s sussed it. Helen

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Interestingly on UK TV last evening an informative programme about making Typoo teabags from the ‘Inside The Factory’ series. They carried out laboratory test on screen. A Typoo teabag soaked two minutes in the mug has about 35mg caffeine, five minutes and that almost doubles. Same applies apparently to the antitoxiants of which apparently tea has many. Also explained the different processes used to make green and black tea both of which are made from the same bush tea plant. Helen

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I’d say nix the lemon and go from there.
I, personally, have an issue with lemon which they say citrus IS a big trigger.

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Yes, indeed. I only had the one Lemon and Ginger teabag however I’m finding it strange all these apparent food allergies because mine seems to have only kicked in since MAV became apparent and active. Suddenly, since my 24/7 dizziness stopped, I do seem much more sensitive to food triggers. I used to be able to eat several chunks of Lemon Drizzle Cake a day, Lemon Meringue Pie etc. Same seems to apply to loads of the items in the John Hopkins ‘banned’ foods list, ham, chorizo, pickles. And many more. I’ve avoided chocolate all my life together with commercial red wine, and ‘proper’ coffee but everything else was fine. I guess it’s just the MAV hypersensitivity. Helen

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Not sure where this is going BUT … I just mentioned to my SO how much I’d love a ham sandwich, and, Bless Him, he brought some in with recent shopping and of course, despite the John Hopkins Diet, I couldn’t resist, even went the whole hog and threw in the pickled onion oneday and pickle on another. Yum. Of course now I’m paying for it it seems with head tightness, wonky eyes etc however what’s more surprisingly is my SO was so dizzy when he sat up in bed this morning, it was some time before he could get up, and he blames dehydration, from the ham and some Stilton he’s had lately, and he’s no MAVer. Which just goes to show… something. But what? Some of our symptoms attributed to MAV … well, are they. Ears, balance, dehydration just part of life for anyone with a tendency that way. Older folk in many cases, Helen

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I can relate to the ham sandwich incident. I was at my brother’s sometime around this month last year and he offered up a “premium deli sliced ham sandwich”… after a good 15 mins of eating it the ground started to look off-kilter and I was sitting down at the time. The nitrates/nitrites and what they preserve it in (the curing salt).
I dare not touch deli meat and Thanksgiving is around the corner, so luckily I can have an actual Turkey, but turkey deli meat, nope.
I’m very jealous of the lemon drizzle cake and lemon meringue pie… sounds delightful… and pickles!!! Yum. Yeah, this MAV thing morphs.
I have a friend on here who’s sensitive to nightshade foods however I’m not. It differs in everyone, but the big triggers seem to set everyone off. I know citrus and coffee are big triggers. So pineapples, lemons, oranges.

I stay away from lemon. But, surprisingly, I can tolerate lemon and ginger tea herbal tea. That is the only thing I have with lemon in it. It is so good. I tried plain yogurt the other day and made me so sick. I woke up with a bad headache and neck ache. That’s is a no no for me.

As I was making my cuppa last evening I noticed, for the first time, my Aldi de-caff teabag box actually states, large and bold, ‘Caffeine free’. Which makes it extra special to me simply because I walked into Aldi, not a store I generally frequent, and put it in the basket myself which, with my experiences of supermarkets, was quite remarkable feat in itself. Helen

Watch out in UK. Apparently there’s been such an increase in popularity of ‘oat milk’ supplies are running low, so that home-made version may come in useful yet although I’m far too much of a country girl to call anything ‘milk’ that doesn’t actually come out of an udder. I was a Young Farmer.

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You make me chuckle😄

Well they do say laughter is the best medicine. At least it shouldn’t have many side effects. Helen

It must be an absolute nightmare having an allergy which could prove fatal, ie peanuts. The most unrelated ingredients seem to occur in the most unlikely products. Makes dieting for medical reasons so difficult. Normally I bake all our own bread, have done for more than twenty years but because I needed large quantities of fresh white breadcrumbs, my SO brought in a freshly baked in the supermarket loaf. Ingredients for a white loaf include soya. Yesterday i read the warning label on fresh sirloin steak, again from the supermarket. Not suitable for half the population it seems. Not suitable for people avoiding flour, sulphates, nuts, sesame and it seems many other things, It pays to read the label. Oh and why such small print. Helen

Well, I seem to have survived Christmas. Pringles and salted nuts are banned from our house under the new regime. It seemed dry turkey sandwiches without the pickles, bubble n squeak without HP sauce. Away from home I managed a frw sips of something non alcohlic and sparkling and a tiny spot of Oxo gravy (which for info actually has added MSG in addition to its own). Caffeine restriction’s not the problem and I think it helps but the diet … it’s so hard to know what triggers what. Sometimes, just occasionally it’s fairly obvious. Even the John Hopkins Diet is pretty restrictive and, as I don’t carry it around with me other than in my head, other people’s houses are difficult. Boxing Day at my sister-in-law’s the dessert choice was Christmas Pud loaded with fruit and aflame with brandy, chocolate mousse or cheesecake. Not lemon cheesecake, good. A new one to me, Mango and Passion fruit. I had a feeling about the passion fruit, vagely thought it was on the ‘banned’ list but, as where I live in southern England chances of meeting up with a passion fruit I figured are only very slightly higher than meeting up with a Duckbilled Platypus. Wrong!

I survived the visit to sister-in-laws, felt fine next day despite the cheesecake, oh, and the real candles everywhere (was she expecting a power cut?), then last evening, in a moment of sheer lunacy, I couldn’t resist a tiny sprinkle of salt, out of the little blue bag, on my crisps So this morning I woke up to tinnitus in both ears (first for months), head pressure, ear fullness and struggling balance. I’m just going forwards and forwards and forwards. Free fall. Well that’s how it feels, Guess that’s Christmas with MAV! Helen

I too am falling forwards and dizzy today. But i have drunk quite a bit of alcoholic drinks over the xmas
Jo

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I too am a survivor of Christmas and New Years! Somehow I made that one out alive. Thank goodness I can have white chocolate, candy canes, and small amounts of vodka

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Migraine Diets are boring. All diets are boring. I’m very lucky I’ve never - yet- had to diet to lose weight. Only ever had to stick to diets twice in my life, the first when I supposedly needed to be on a Low Fat Diet because my Gall Bladder was not fully functional and I was awaiting an operation (which incidentally never happened because I’d been misdiagnosed), and, since I, voluntarily and perhaps in a fit of temporary insanity, decided to try a Migraine Diet. No medic has ever suggested I took such a course. In fact the Migraine Specialist Neurologist when challenged actually advised me not to bother. However, last Summer I decided to try reducing caffeine and trying the John Hopkins Diet just to see if it would head off some remaining symptoms such as rear head pressure etc but it certainly is boring. Worthwhile maybe. Each time I break it, I seem to have to suffer the consequences but plain food is so - er - plain. Two nights ago I threw all caution to the winds, again, and cooked an old favourite Stroganoff - well, my own home-made economical version which includes Campbells tinned soup and 2 teaspoons vinegar. Result rear head pressure and even a bit of ear fullness and a sense of feeling ‘off’ all day yesterday. Well I suppose it does show that I’m not suffering this boredom in vain. Helen

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Apart from my life-long food sensitivities, chocolate, oranges, red wine, I never expected I had any others. Never gave it much thought. Following attacks which descended 36-48 hours after Eating Out eventually I wondered about other food allergies. Even checked out tyramine etc etc and dismissed them. However since the 25/7 dizziness ceased things started to look plainer. Triggers easier to spot possibly. Chilli con carne (unlike virtually all the rest of my food intake always made with a packet mix for decades cos Him Indoors like it that way), pickles (commercial or home-prepared) now gone off my diet sheet. One reaction too many. Home prepared sweet n sour probably going the same way and yoghurt is hanging in the balance but like many things with MAV, I’d say ‘Never say never’, “I don’t have any food triggers”. Best to keep an open mind. Helen

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