National Headache Foundation
5252 North Western Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60625
Toll Free (800) 843-2256 Fax (312) 907-6278
Read labels and ask questions when eating out. Tyramine content can vary among brand names available on the market because of preparation, processing or storage. Tenderizers, MSG, nitrate, or nitrite compounds are likely to be provoking agents
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Foods
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Foods Allowed
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Foods to Avoid
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Beverages
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Decaffeinated coffee, fruit juices, club soda, decaffeinated colas (&-Up, ginger ale). Alcoholic beverages least likely to trigger headaches include Haute Sauterne, Reisling, vodka, Seagram's V.O., Cutty Sark. Limit wine, port wine, distilled spirits to 4 ounces or less. |
Limit caffeine sources* to 8 ounces daily: coffee tea, cola type soda; chocolate milk, cocoa. Alcoholic beverage: ale, beer, Chianti, sherry, Burgundy, vermouth. *Caffeine has no tyramine per se, but aggravates the symptoms of headache and hypertension. |
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Meat, fish, poultry
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Fresh prepared meats, fish, poultry, eggs. | Aged, canned, cured, or processed meats, canned or aged ham, pickled herring, salted dried fish, chicken liver, aged game, hot dogs, (no nitrates or nitrites); bolonga sausages; pepperoni, summer sausages; any meat prepared with meat tenderizers, soy sauce, or yeast extracts. |
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Dairy
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Milk: homogenized, 2% or skim. Cheese: American, cottage, gouda, farmer, ricotta, cream cheese, Velveeta, yogurt. Limit sour cream to 1/2 cup |
Aged, mature cheese: blue, Boursault, brick, Brie types, Camembert types, cheddar, Swiss, Roquefort, Stilton, mozzarella, parmesan, provolone, Romano, Emmentaler. |
| Bread/cereal/starchy vegetables |
Commercial Bread. All hot and dry cereals. White potato, sweet potato, rice, pasta. |
Sourdough bread, breads and crackers containing cheese or chocolate. |
| Vegetables | All except those to avoid. Use with caution preparation: navy beans, pinto beans. | Broad beans, Italian beans lima, lentils, snow peas, fava beans, soy beans, sauerkraut. |
| Fruit | All except those to avoid or limit. | Limit to 1/2 cup daily: avocado, banana, citrus, figs, raisins, papaya, passion fruit, red plums, raspberries. |
| Soups | Cream soups made from foods allowed. Homemade broths | Canned soups: soup cubes, bouillon cubes, soup bases with autolyzed yeast or monosodium glutamate (MSG) (read labels). |
| Desserts | Fruit, sherbets, ice cream, cakes, cookies, Jell-O | Use with caution: products containing chocolate |
| Sweets, hard candy | Sugar, jelly, jam, honey, syrup. | Chocolate candies, licorice, molasses, chocolate syrup |
| Miscellaneous | Salt in moderation |
Soy sauce, monosodium glutamate (MSG), yeast, yeast extracts, Brewer's yeast, meat tenderizers, Accent, seasoned salt. Read labels carefully. Commercial frozen TV dinners, pizza with cheese. Nuts and seeds: peanuts, peanut butter**, pumpkin, sesame. Some snack items and instant food contents to be avoided. Read all labels. Any pickled, preserved, or marinated foods. ** Peanuts and peanut butter may be used with caution. |
