Imigran & Foods to Avoid

[peelee1979]

Hi Everyone -

I am new to this forum and have just been diagnosed with "migraine with aura."  My neuro prescribed me to take Imigran (50mg) when I start to feel one coming on.  I believe Imigran is the same as Imitrex in the states - I live in Bangkok so we get different brand names here in Thailand.

Have any of you had success with this drug?  I sure hope it works for me.

Also, I need to start keeping a food journal.  I think coffee (which I love!) may be a trigger.  Splenda and other various forms of aspartame I think might be causing them as well, but not 100% sure just yet.

I know everyone if different, but are there foods/ingredient (like MSG) that are very obvious to avoid?

Thanks!
Peelee

[charlene71]

I have found some good advice and cheap imigran on this site: http://www.doctorfox.co.uk/migraine/ - they deliver worldwide. Hope that's useful!

[dame_wilbur]

There's a nasty little amino acid out there called tyramine. It's in a LOT of foods, at different intensities, that's a HUGE trigger for me. Chocolate, red grapes and wines, cheeses, yeasty breads, and a bunch of other foods have high tyramine levels. What I did many years ago was Google "low tyramine diet" and go on an elimination diet where I didn't eat any of the foods listed. It was hard to find stuff to eat for a while until I learned how to think low tyramine. I did that for about 6 months, and then SLOWLY, added foods back in, one at a time, and took notes on which foods triggered me and which didn't.

Good luck!

~Dame

[Dr Santos]

Hi,
You are right in saying that there are types of food that can trigger migraine headaches. Caffeine in coffee, chocolates, peanuts and processed foods including MSG are also associated with this condition. There is a migraine tracker here in Medhelp that may help you out. There are plenty of migraine headaches in the market today and treatment is usually trial and error for some. Imitrex or sumatriptan is used to treat migraine headaches, with or without aura, in adults. This has been effective to some headache sufferers. If it does not help with your symptoms, inform your doctor for a change of medication. Take care and do keep us posted.