Cooking To Avoid Migraines: Don't Let It Be A Headache!

Several foods can spark migraine headaches. Up-and-coming chefs in culinary training are learning how to avoid migraine-triggering ingredients without losing flavor.

by Sue Booth
sue.booth@Cooking-School-Search.com
Cooking School Search Columnist

There are many different migraine-headache-trigger foods. If you become a chef, you may need to cater to your client and cook without migraine-triggering chemicals. Culinary training or a cooking school degree can keep you in-the-know when it comes to healthy, flavorful, alternative cooking.

Migraine-Causing Foods

As an aspiring chef, it will be important for you to know some of the ingredients that may cause migraine headaches. Some migraine trigger foods include:

• Monosodium glutamate (MSG)—a flavor enhancer commonly found in Chinese and processed foods. MSG is also found in fried chicken, canned and instant soups, fresh turkey, and canned tuna.
• Chocolate and chocolate liquors.
• Caffeine in coffee, soda, and sweet tea.
• Alcohol, including red wine, champagne, and sherry.
• Processed meats such as cold cuts and hot dogs.
• Aspartame in diet sodas and foods.

While most of the above-mentioned foods can be avoided, chefs may want to use them to enhance flavor. As a chef, you may have to find healthy cooking substitutes to boost your clients’ taste buds.

Migraine-Free Culinary Training

As an aspiring chef, you’ll want to cater to your health-conscious customers, by steering them toward healthy food choices and helping them avoid any migraine-triggering chemicals. With a culinary degree from a reputable cooking school, you may have an advantage over a chef without the proper education. Culinary training will introduce you to alternative ingredients and seasonings that won’t noticeably alter the flavor of a dish.

You may have to turn to cooking with alternative spices or enzymes to enhance food flavor. Culinary training at one of the many national cooking schools can teach chefs to cook flavorful food without using MSG or other migraine-inducing ingredients. If you’re interested in becoming a chef, consider cooking school. With nearly 25 percent of women and eight percent of men experiencing migraine headaches, you’ll be helping a lot of people.

Sources

The National Foundation for the Treatment of Pain
Food and Migraines

About the Author

Sue Booth is a freelance writer and a former panel taste tester for Good Housekeeping magazine.

Posted on May 11, 2007 at 2:40 PM

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