Headache after eating

[captainheadache]

I get intense, throbbing headaches 2 hours after eating food.  The more sugar content, the more intense the headache, and the longer the headache lasts.  If I eat something like a snickers bar or a piece of cake, the intensity is debilitating and the pain can last for days.  Just about anything with more than a few grams of sugar gives me a headache.  I've dealt with this since I can remember, and I've been physically and mentally drained for most of my life (ie, if I can go 2 or 3 days a month without having some kind of head pain, I'd be ecstatic).  

Here's some extra information:
I'm very underweight.  I am about 5' 10" and I weigh 120 ~ 125lbs.  The most I've ever weighed was 135, and I had to work very hard lifting weights at the gym for months to reach that weight.  I have about 5% body fat.

My mom is diabetic (type II) and her parents were diabetic (needed insulin shots, so type I?)

My half-sister has Grave's Disease.

I've been to the emergency room a few times because of headaches, but my blood sugar is always "normal".  MRI's have shown nothing abnormal.

I yawn incessantly after eating - especially during the afternoon.  I can yawn 20+ times a minute for over an hour depending on how much I eat.  After the yawning stops, the headache usually starts to kick in.

I wake up and have to go pee at least 1 to 3 times a night.

I've wasted lots of time and money seeing internists and specialists.  No doctor has ever run a test outside of standard "blood work", which shows my blood sugar as being "normal".  Every doctor is eager to treat the symptom, but the best "cause" I've heard is that "headaches just happen to some people".  The diagnosis is always given about 5 minutes after I say that I have headaches, and then I'm sent off to the pharmacy to pick up the latest prescription migraine medication.  I'm very frustrated by this.

Any recommendations?

[solsonmedhelp]

Check out fructose malabsorption and FODMAPs.

The best research is from Australia.  Sue Shepherd did her phd on this.  

Symptoms: digestive complaints (diarrhea and or constipation), headache (behind the eyes), fuzzy head (poor memory, inability to think logically), irritability, depression, bloating, gas, etc.

What to do about it: cut out most fruits and veggies (especially onions and garlic), eat a lot of protein, cut out wheat (fructans), honey, juices, alcohol.

I eat sourdough bread, peanut butter, small serves of raspberry jam, lactose free milk, oatmeal, potatoes, dark chocolate, coffee, carrots, spinach, hard cheeses,

[centuryhousedw]

I have had the same symptoms as you for the last 6 years. It does appear that sugars, too many carbs will trigger this for me.

I was diagnosed with reactive hypoglycemia. The root cause *appears to be* a hereditary high triglycerides, which serves to shut down function of the pancreas.

Since the pancreas controls insulin production / release, the explanation given me was that when I eat sugar/carbs, it puts glucose into my system. Instead of a correct amount of insulin being released, a huge amount gets dumped, which knocks my blood sugar low.

The body then releases epinephrine & norepinephrine, to halt the insulin production / release. This causes some blood vessel restriction etc., and the headache. Since epinephrine is adrenaline, it causes elevated heart rate & blood pressure as well - which is consistant with what you reported.

All of that said - there was a commentor above (SMH1969) who mentioned a systemic yeast problem possibly causing this. In addition to my confirmed triglyceride & pancreas problem, I have begun to suspect that yeast may be the main culprit instead - but I haven't confirmed this yet. It is worth checking into.

[Mandy37_6]

Your night time adrenaline rushes could be related to cortisol levels. You may want to see if your MD can check into that.

[johnny_jamz]

oh and two more trigger foods I forgot to mention:

Beer and Orange Juice, along with the aforementioned Rice, Potatoes and Fish

[johnny_jamz]

I, too, found this forum after searching "headache after eating." I am a 36 year old male. These symptoms  began happening to me two months ago, and was first triggered after having a bit of alcohol. I got a pretty intense pain at my left temple and behind my left eye.I did not connect this as cause and effect at the time. A week later, after once again having some alcohol, the same thing happened. So I swore off alcohol.

But I began to discover that seemingly randomly after meals, I would get the same migraine, always in my left temple/eye. I started to pay attention to what I was eating and when I would get these migraines. Although I haven't nailed down all the triggers, so far I suspect Rice, Potatoes and Fish.

I also get slightly anxious, and I even experience some flank pain (kidney pain), although I am not convinced this is related to the migraines.

Captain Headache, you have mentioned that the cause of your condition could be hypoglycemia or fibromalgya. If you could elaborate on these diagnosis, I would much appreciate it. Have your doctors come to a more solid conclusion on what is causing you to endure this terrible ordeal?

Unfortunately, I am uninsured, and if I pay for a doctors visit, I'd like to go in with as much information about my possible condition as possible.

Thanks for keeping this thread updated Captain Headache, you are a true advocate for your fellow human beings who endure this terrible and mysterious illness.

[FMR1969]

My guess...yeast infection/ overgrowth (or a bacterial overgrowth)

Read the webpage by Karen Tripp on Candida

She eliminated carbs/sugars as much as possible and used Undecylenic acid from castor oil( she used a product called Thorne Formula SF722) acid and Caprylic acid from coconut oil acid to kill the fungus and then a probiotic to have beneficial bacteria compete for food with the fungus.

I would say that the headaches are dehydration and/or toxins (yeast are used to make alcohol and everyone gets headaches when they have too much alcohol, so if you are feeding yeast inside you maybe they are dumping toxins in you that add to the headaches; you also said you get regular diarrhea  which is dehydrating) You stated that headaches were less freq. when you were a wrestler...maybe you burned off a lot of the carbs used to feed the fungus. Less fungal growth = less headaches?
Yawning....skipping meals and being low on carbs results in "air hunger"...if the fungus is using up your carbs, along with your body dumping carbs through urination and diarrhea   (possibly as a defense to starve the fungus

Tired after meals ....if you are starving (again b/c of diarrhea  and  the fungus competing for the sugar) as soon as you eat you will be very tired/sleepy

Your doctors seem to be chasing symptoms and forgetting about looking for a cause.  Stomach ulcers were stress/runs in family/spicy food.....turns out it is H.Pylori bacterium.  Arthritis...again was runs in family/cold work environments, etc....now bacteria.  Heart disease.....was poor genetics, IE runs in families....now caused by viruses. Look for a cause and the cure is in foods along with your own immune system.

On the Karen Tripp Diet  she avoided and pre-made foods b/c they contain a lot of cabs/sugars.  Yo have to go back to eating real foods....for example for beakfast, bacon is manufactured food, so substitute a slice of pork for breakfast along with a couple of eggs and no toast or cereals and no OJ which has a lot of sugar. Replace the calories from sugar with calories from oils, like olive oil.  Lunch for example can be a large salad with low carbs veggies like bell peppers, celery, cucumbers, cabbage drenched with spices and olive oil and eaten with a protein source like roast chicken  but not with luncheon meats b/c they contain a lot of sugar.

If the Karen Tripp Candida Diet works for you I want the Nobel Prize okay?