S G BLOG POSTS: Compare the Diets A NEW COMPARISON CHART

     You've had a stressful week.  It was very busy at work and you have something boring you must attend Saturday night.  You have been off your low-everything-good diet for two days , including that whole piece of decadent chocolate birthday cake.  You only slept 6 hours last night.  Your neck is now cracking when you turn it, your nose is running and your sinuses are full.  You are aware of tingling in your lips, your bad ear is full and you have small flurries of vertigo.  It would be easy to wonder about allergies as a real cause of your problems or perhaps the whiplash you had ten years ago. ( We know, of course, that it is migraine and all of these symptoms are on the migraine continuum.)  Maybe you just wish it was allergy because then you think you could eat more desirable items.  Sorry.  The diets for allergy (low histamine) and  headache/migraine (low tyramine, et al) and even for tannins as a cause (low tannin diet) are all very similar.  The foods to avoid really overlap.
     Here are the sites where you can see how similar the diets are in elimination, restriction and rotation.  And then see my chart afterwards for a comparison summary.  I included the Zone Diet because people have been successful using it to eat three balanced meals and two snacks at the same time everyday to regulate insulin levels. For different reasons, these similar diets all work.

Flickr.com

1.  "Migraine - More Than A Headache"  by Drs. Michael Teixido and John Carey, Johns Hopkins Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery.   (click here)  On the very last page of this article.

2.  Histamine Intolerance  (Click Here)

     HIstamine Restricted Diet  (Click Here)

3.  National Headache Foundation (Click Here)

4.  Low Tannin Diet  (Click Here)  

THIS IS WHAT TO AVOID:  You will avoid the same foods for different reasons.  Notice the overlap with our diet.

MIGRAINE DIET              LOW HISTAMINE             LOW TANNINS            ZONE DIET  
     Eat regularly                No foods with high       Avoid complex poly-     To keep insu-
timed meals/low            levels of histamine/        phenols in foods,dye   lin levels stable
tyramine/no aged          no fermented/no             perfumes,cigarettes,    3 meals,
or fermented/no MSG   artificial colors/no           fragrances                    2 snacks at
no caffeine/no               benzoates/no BHA or                                             same time
alcohol                           BHT                                                                         everyday

DAIRY:
All aged cheese, sour     Any prepared foods          Yellow cheese/sour        All hard cheese/
cream/buttermilk,            with restricted ingre-          cream/ice cream or      (ricotta/cottage
limit yogurt (2x/wk)          dients/aged cheese/          yogurt with guar gum    okay)ice cream/
Fresh cheese okay.         fresh ricotta and                or carob bean gum or   butter/sour
                                       cottage okay/Yo-                tannin additions            cream
                                        gurt/buttermilk
(Fresh cheese may
cause  problems
for some - omit)

CAFFEINE:

 All caffeinated               All carbonated drinks/        All coffee/black tea       Unfavorable:
beverages and               All tea                                                                      Caffeine (alters
medications                                                                                                    Insulin levels

CHOCOLATE:

All chocolate and           All chocolate and cocoa    All chocolate/carob        Okay to eat dark,
cocoa                                                                                                              has least 
                                                                                                                        amount of sugar

NUTS:

No nuts/peanut                                                        Avoid all but peanuts     Limit amounts of
butter /limit seeds                                                    without skins and           all nuts. No 
                                                                                 blanched almonds         walnuts or soy-
                                                                                                                        oil
ALCOHOL:

All alcoholic                 All alcoholic beverages      Red wine/white wine       Limited
beverages and            and medications/all            in oak/beer/balsamic      
medication. No wine   vinegar and wine                vinegar/cider and wine
vinegar                        products                              vinegar

CEREALS AND GRAINS: 

First day fresh bread     No artificial flavors/          No spices and several    All are on
and yeast products,       bleached flour/                 herbs/ alfalfa/                 unfavorable list.
(bagels, pizza, dough-   cheese, chocolate,           Barley flour                    Really reduced
nuts,sourdough,            cinnamon/cocoa/                                                     quantities.
yeast extract,                 preservatives, hydro-
barley(check                lyzed lecithin/fermented
flour)                             soy or brewer's yeast

MEATS AND EGGS:

Aged, canned, cured,    Raw egg white, all fish,    Smoked, marinated,     Whole egg is
processed, or package  all processed, smoked,    aged, prepackaged       limited, whites ok,
deli meats, pickled,        fermented,leftovers,aged.  processed meats.       Poor choice for
brine.  Eggs 2-3/week    All sausage.                                                           cured, processed,
                                                                                                                      liver, ground beef.

MSG:

All forms                        Avoids many sources of    Barley flour                 Promotes fresh
                                      MSG in grains, meat,         Barley/alfalfa/             preparation of food
                                      and dairy. No sulfites.        All hydrolyzed             All items that may 
                                                                                products                      contain MSG are 
                                                                                                                    on unfavorable
                                                                                                                    list.
SWEETENERS:

Aspartame                   Flavored syrup,                  No food coloring          All sugar and
(Equal/Nutrasweet)      Commercial candy and                                          sweet items on
                                      confections                                                           "unfavorable list" so
                                                                                                                    quantity is small.
                                                                                                                    Sucralose okay

Vegetables:

All pea pods, beans,   Eggplant/Pumpkin/           All beans but white,    Limits:beans,ketch-

sauerkraut, raw           sauerkraut, tomato        all fermented,             up,pickles,chips,

onions (shallots/         peppers,spinach,           pickles, limits             potatoes,corn
leeks ok), pickles,       soy beans,red beans     onions, cucumbers
fermented soy             pickles,fermented, all    tomatoes, eggplant
products, olives          tomato products
HIGH IN GLUTAMATES:
TOMATOES/PEPPERS

(MORE SO CANNED),
CORN,PEAS,WHITE
POTATO 

FRUIT:

avocado,figs,papaya    apricot,cherry,cranberry   Red apples/juice          Unfavorable:
red plums,prunes,        loganberry,nectarine,       grape juice, unripe        Banana
dried raisins,currant     currant,dates,oranges,     banana, raspberries,    dates, figs,guava,
Limit:banana,citrus       papaya, pineapple,          currants,dates,limit       papaya, raisins,
family,pineapple,           prunes,red plums,           citrus family,apricot,      mango, kumquat,
raspberries                   raspberry,                         berries,red cherries,     cranberry
                                     strawberry, peach,           grapes, kiwi, nectarine
                                                                              peach, persimmon,
                                                                              pomegranate 
(Click Here for Complete Shopping List/What To Eat)