Suffering from headaches that are affecting your training and other day-to-day activities? The culprit could be your diet.
May 19, 2011
FLEXONLINE.COM
Headaches affect as many as 50 million Americans a year and are said to be the leading cause of absence from work. Headaches can ruin a good workout or keep a bodybuilder out of the gym completely.
Few bodybuilders may realize that some of the most common causes of headaches are ordinary foods that they eat every day. This may be particularly troublesome for people who take in large quantities of food to support muscle growth. Food-related headaches are usually felt on both sides of the head, occur within a specific time after eating an offending food, and disappear after the food is eliminated from the diet.
If you frequently suffer headaches, consider avoiding some of the common foods that may be triggering them. One ingredient to be aware of is tyramine. Tyramine is produced from the amino acid tyrosine; it increases blood flow to the brain, sometimes leading to headache. Cheese is high in tyramine. That’s particularly true of blue cheese, brie, Cheddar, Stilton, feta, Gorgonzola, mozzarella, Muenster, Parmesan, Swiss and processed cheese.
Other foods to watch for in terms of tyramine content include processed meat, homemade bread, sour cream, overripe bananas, figs, raisins, avocados, eggplant, pickled herring, canned soups, yogurt, chocolate, soy sauce, beer and red wine. Some fat-loss supplements also contain tyramine as an ingredient. If you notice you are more prone to headaches after eating, pay attention to when you get the headaches and what you have eaten. Try to avoid those foods in future meals and note whether you stop getting headaches.
