Some people may experience migraine headaches due to consumption of wheat, a small new study suggests. Patients were all found to have a sensitivity to gluten, In the study, Dr. Marios Hadjivassiliou, from the Royal Hallamshire Hospital inSheffield, UK, and colleagues looked at 10 patients who had a long history of headachesthat had recently worsened or became resistant to treatment. Many of the patients also had alack of balance or unsteadiness. Tests showed that these patients had a sensitivity to gluten, and magnetic resonance imagingscans suggested they had inflammation in the central nervous system. Nine of the 10 patients tried a gluten-free diet, and seven stopped having headaches. Twoother patients had some--but not complete--success by switching to a gluten-free diet. Onepatient did not follow the diet. Gluten sensitivity can include celiac disease, an inherited inability to digest gluten thatresults in abdominal distention, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle wasting and lethargy. Full findings are published in Neurology 2001;56:385-388.
