If You Suffer from Migraines

[ndrosen]

I have been further in touch with Cynthia, with whom I plan to go on a walk Saturday. She was suffering from a migraine when we ate dinner at Namaste Jalsa; she had arrived at the restaurant before me, and had arranged to buy some takeout food for later. She reported to me afterward that our dinner seemed to help her headache, and that she was continuing treatment with food that had Indian spices.

I’m not claiming medical expertise here, and if Indian spices were a perfect cure for migraines, the fact would have been well-known by now. Nonetheless, people who suffer from migraines may want to investigate whether some spicy dal tadka will help. I’ve read that turmeric has effects similar to those of aspirin, and that the burn from hot chili peppers can promote the release of endorphins. So, as Hippocrates said, let food be thy medicine.

Comments

[thewayne]

I'm not a big fan of Indian food overall because of the flavor profile, though there are some that are okay. A lot of it is simply exposure: living all my life a hundred miles from the border with Mexico, that cuisine is my major profile. For me, when I had a serious cold or sinus infection, I wanted hot Mexican food. When I moved in with my wife, she never understood why that was what I wanted when I was sick - hot and sour Chinese soup was also acceptable. I found the sinus opening very therapeutic. I think there's also a blood vessel dilation effect when you're consuming peppers, and that is probably beneficial to migraines.

I know another thing that helps migraines is hydration! In cases of significant dehydration, the brain actually physically shrinks a bit, and that causes it to pull away from the dura matter, which causes problems. Re-hydrating lets it relax and re-expand. Eating all that Indian food you're also probably drinking a lot of tea, water, and other things, causing re-hydration. And yes, turmeric has medical properties, too in the classical Indian medical system whose name I cannot spell correctly off-hand.

[cynthia_says_hello]

Yes to hydration!! 👍🏼 Thanks in part to my dear mother, I drink over a gallon of water a day - as I am drinking water now. She kept pressuring us (me and my siblings) to drink 8-10 glasses of water a day so I am like trained to drink water all day. 😅 Earlier this Spring, I suffered from a really bad case of heat stroke and I did not even know I was getting hot (I have nerve damage) so I force myself to drink even more water and take breaks if I am outside doing yard work. Even if I don’t think or feel I have to, if that makes sense.

Yes to turmeric - at times I wondered if it was the cure to almost anything.

Yes to hot and sour soup (though I cannot always consume since I have gastro challenges) - but anything spicy tends to help me with migraines and also sinuses and probably if I had a cold.

When I was at dinner with ndrosen as he mentioned in this entry, the takeout was a godsend and helped me both that night and the week that followed. Ndrosen was also quite the gentleman and was amazingly patient even though I had a migraine and was far from 100%. An excellent dinner with even better company. ♥️