Wheat headache

Karen tells this story of her son’s 3-month struggle with headache and other symptoms:

My son suffered from chronic (nearly daily) headaches and dizziness for 3 months, missing 30+ days of school in that time. Three days after removing wheat from his diet, he is headache-free. Chronic constipation gone. Former pale skin, dark circles under his eyes: gone. Energy level back, moodiness: gone.

Taking him off wheat was always my gut instinct, but we were told by everyone in the medical field that it couldn’t possibly be from a food issue. We had tried numerous medications, took every blood test possible, MRI, massage, acupuncture, chiropractic, with no long-term success.

It started the end of January when my 8 yr old son (who had never had a headache before this day) came home early from school with a headache and stomach ache. I chalked it up to start of the flu. Three days later: no relief. He got up late at night, couldn’t sleep due to headache (Advil provided no relief whatsoever), so we took a trip the our children’s hospital. He was given a physical, neurological tests; all appeared normal. Treated with Maxeran [drug for nausea} and IV fluids, which relieved his headache, but it returned a couple of days later.

I called our "health-link" info line and they suggested we go back to hospital. Treated again with Maxeran and fluids. It again relieved headache, but only for a day or two. He was referred to a pediatric neurologist. In the meantime, our family doctor prescribed Imitrex for headache treatment-- didn't work. He then had an MRI [of the brain], came back normal. They suggested high dose vitamin B2 (400 mg) and Sandomigran; no results.

One theory was that it could be tension headaches, so we had about 3 acupuncture treatments. Provided relief for a day or two, but nothing long-term. Also tried chiropractic, again it brought short term relief.

During this time I kept a food/headache diary. 3 times in these 3 months he would be OK in the morning but I would get a call from the school at almost the exact same time of day, between 1 and 1:30 in the afternoon that he had a headache. I had a few people suggest that he was allergic/sensitive to wheat. Asked for a gluten intolerance blood test, so had a full blood work up and all came back normal. Saw a neurologist at the pediatric headache clinic, full schedule of physical and neurological tests all appear normal and she was skeptical of a food reaction. Neither the neurologist nor family doctor could recommend anything else for me to do other than massage, physiotherapy…. oh, except one doctor did suggest that he see a psychologist! Very frustrating when they can’t come up with a reason or cause they think it’s psychological.

I knew it was something internal because after all these months his skin was pale, he had dark circles under his eyes, his headaches typically came with dizziness, he was lethargic, stomach pains, chronic and long term constipation (off and on for about year and half). Made a half attempt to do wheat/gluten free diet earlier into this saga, but gave up after a couple days, as symptoms seem to get worse. This last attempt came with worsening symptoms, also, but after researching and found that it’s common to have withdrawal symptoms (severe muscle and joint pain, I could hardly touch him and it would hurt), I figured that he was having withdrawal and stuck it out.

Halfway thru the 3rd day his headache was gone and, to date, we are 3 weeks without a headache!!! About a week in, his bowels started working again, really working. He said it was the first time in months that he didn’t have to strain to poop, and it was a real poop, not little rabbit ones. Full disclosure: He is also on a dairy-free diet at the moment, also, as I’ve been told that, since his system is healing, it would be wise to take out dairy, too. But as I look back at his food diary and see the pattern of his headaches, I am convinced that it’s wheat.

I guess the only true test is to feed him wheat again, but I really want to give his body time to heal before I test him. After confiding in people about our experience, I have had a few people tell me similar stories about the link with headaches and wheat. I wish Western medicine would at least be open minded about this issue. I wonder how many more people are just suffering headaches they treat by trying to just dull the pain and not search for the cause? I hope that more people will find the connect for their health issues and the food they eat.

Karen and her son were lucky: They discovered the answer–modern semi-dwarf wheat–after only 3 months. Most people struggle for decades with frequent incapacitating headaches, fatigue, gastrointestinal complaints, no answers from the healthcare system, struggling to maintain grades in school or hold a job before they stumble on the answer. And note that testing for the antibodies (or even intestinal biopsy) for celiac disease is typically negative, since it involves mechanisms other than an HLA-DQ-mediated immune mechanism.

It took this mother’s instinct and powers of observation to uncover the answer. It had nothing to do with genetic defects, nothing to do with an infectious agent, nothing to do with head injury. The medical system failed this boy, the doctors failed him, the conventional advice from agencies like the USDA that make NO allowance for such common reactions failed him.

Just what component of modern wheat is responsible for such headache reactions? Is it the abnormal brain binding of the gliadin-derived exorphin opiates? Is it vasospastic phenomena triggered by the microgram quantities of wheat germ agglutinin that gain entry into the bloodstream? Nobody knows, but the connection is increasingly certain: consumption of modern wheat is associated with severe, chronic headaches; removal of all wheat can result in dramatic cure.