Head Problems

[dawnrose008]

Hi!

I've been gluten-free for 2 months now and needless to say it has been an up and down rollercoaster. I'm having some weird issues and wondering if anyone out there has any insight....for the past 3 weeks now I've had major head symptoms, fogginess, that sometimes turn into headaches, and a general feeling of pressure in my head. I feel very stoned and out-of-it. However, my GI symptoms have improved alot...they are barely bothering me anymore. My GP thinks it is seasonal allergies, since there is major pollen in the air, etc. He gave me a prescription for astelin spray, but I haven't taken it yet. My nose is not stuffy...could seasonal allergies cause these types of symptoms (I've never had them in the past)? could this be gluten or food related; I am also free of dairy, and very careful about gluten...my sister (who also has celiac) thinks I may just be adjusting to the diet still...does it take this long to adjust to the diet? any ideas? thanks!

[holdthegluten]

Wowwwwwwwww. Talk about hitting the nail right on the head. This is exactly what i have been dealing with for the past 3 months (Been gluten free for 4 months.) I have an appointment on Thursday with an ENT to see why i constantly have head pressure (between eyes and above nose), and have brain fog, and a mild headache, especially when i bend over. Everything points to allergies, or sinusitis, but i dont think its an infection, because of no yellow or green discharge. It also causes me to feel tired and kind of dizzy or off feeling. It Sucks! I will let you know if the specialist finds anything. I also dont have too many GI issues, mainly just the crappy head feeling. I would describe it as medicine head, but i dont really take any medicine. What does seem to help temporarily is saline nasal spray. It seems to relieve some pressure, but it always comes back. I have never had allergies for this long, or sinusitis that wont go away. Hang in there and i will try to give you some help when i figure it out. God Bless You!

[dawnrose008]

dear holdthegluten,

Wow! interesting that we are both having the same symptoms after going gluten free. I'm feeling generally tired and sometimes dizzy as well. It's pretty much everyday, and doesn't seem to be getting any better at this point. Definitely let me know what your doc says...I'm interested to see if they find anything..maybe it will help me get to the bottom of this as well. Thanks alot!!

[Murph]

There are often other food allergies (often temporary) showing up after going gluten-free.

I suggest keeping a food/symptom diary to help figure it out. Some people report reactions a day or 2 after ingesting something. Most of my headache, dizziness, weird fuzzy/prickly face etc symptoms came on either immed or at the 20 or 45min marks.

A diary makes it easy to the patterns.

[chatycady]

I accidently ate some lunch meat that I thought was gluten free today and I am having the head issues you describe. I also have noticed an acute sense of smell. when glutened. I was always told I have a nose that can smell anything a mile away, but now I think there is a connection with gluten intolerance. This "extra sensation" has gone away while on the diet.

I would agree it's either from a different food allergy or residual affect of gluten.

[Ltrain917]

Hi!

I've been gluten-free for 2 months now and needless to say it has been an up and down rollercoaster. I'm having some weird issues and wondering if anyone out there has any insight....for the past 3 weeks now I've had major head symptoms, fogginess, that sometimes turn into headaches, and a general feeling of pressure in my head. I feel very stoned and out-of-it. However, my GI symptoms have improved alot...they are barely bothering me anymore. My GP thinks it is seasonal allergies, since there is major pollen in the air, etc. He gave me a prescription for astelin spray, but I haven't taken it yet. My nose is not stuffy...could seasonal allergies cause these types of symptoms (I've never had them in the past)? could this be gluten or food related; I am also free of dairy, and very careful about gluten...my sister (who also has celiac) thinks I may just be adjusting to the diet still...does it take this long to adjust to the diet? any ideas? thanks!

Since going gluten-free 6 months ago, I've been on a similar rollercoaster ride. I sporadically get really dizzy and anxious. When I feel like this I just can't think right. Trouble focusing, cloudiness, etc. The medicine head description is perfect. My GI issues have also improved. I've been trying to make a correlation between my episodes and diet. My guess is that it is other food allergies or maybe preservatives, but I'm still lost.

[bruinjim]

I've noticed these symptoms and more. I've been able to track down most of them and fix them, but it's taken quite a bit of work.

There are two problems that I have, that others may also be having. Well, three if you count allergies. The two problems are a very sensitive endocrine system and a problem with the linoleic acid cascade.

The endocrine problem produces varied symptoms whenever different endocrine altering foods are eaten. Some personal examples that I've noticed:

Gluten - creates feelings of sleepiness

Meat and dairy - creates feelings of anxiety and hot flashes

Mustard oil (this includes garlic, onions, leeks, spring onion, cabbage family (including broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower)) - create strong hot flashes and other flu-like symptoms

Caffeine - causes attention deficit disorder, visible shaking, loss of motor skills

I have similarly strange and strong reactions to any other endocrine altering substance, which includes alcohol, painkillers, most antihistamines, opiates, and any other behavior-altering drug. (I haven't tried many behavior altering drugs, but I'm judging this based on my biological father's reaction to psychologist-prescribed drugs.)

If the effects of one reaction are strong enough, they lead to significant secondary reactions. Often the effects of a reaction are periodic, so there are times when they are stronger and weaker. Effects start anywhere from 30 min to 2 hours after eating, and can last up to 3 days depending on severity although most subside within 12 hours.

The endocrine problems are one part. The next part involves the linoleic acid cascades. These are a series of chemical reactions that start from the omega fatty acids (omega-3 and omega-6). These chemical reactions create a number of neurological-chemicals, some of which cause inflammation while others have anti-inflammatory properties. The chemicals that cause inflammation are mainly created from omega-6. The chemicals that soften the inflammation come from the omega-3 chain. (There's a third acid cascade, but it is less prominent.)

The standard diet today contains a very low ratio of omega-3 to omega-6. This is suspected of causing many different health related issues. The immediate response to omega-6 that I get is a pressure that forms in my head, and thoughts become fuzzy. I'm not really sure if 'fuzzy' is a good word here, but it's the only one that I can think of. I also have an increased sense of irritation, although I'm not sure if that is a secondary reaction.

I've noticed that I have a similar response in stressful situations, so there is also an endocrine reaction that causes similar symptoms. I also have hypersensitivity to certain endocrine-altering substances, such as caffeine, as well as my own hormones. I'm not sure if the hypersensitivity is a part of the problem, or if it is a separate complicating factor. So I'm not sure how well my symptoms match up to yours.

I've managed to come up with a diet that eliminates most of the problems. (I still get a slight pressure after eating, but it is very slight and doesn't hinder me much.) It's a bit radical, though, so I'm not sure if other people will be able to use it.

Ingredients:

1.42 cup flaxseed, finely ground

.5 cups peanut butter (PC makes a nice peanut butter with nothing else in it)

.25 ounces of beef liver (Very small amount, don't increase this)

1 cup cucumber

1 mid-sized tomato

1 cup celery

1 cup lettuce

2 bananas

1 boiled egg

6 cups apple juice (Not from concentrate, no vitamin C added) (I just use a jug of PC apple juice, not from concentrate, unfiltered, nothing added)

Directions:

Blend everything in a blender, until it is liquefied and well mixed

Nutrition information for this diet (sourced from nutritiondata.com):

Vitamin A - 95%

Vitamin C - 178%

Vitamin E - 33%

Vitamin K - 92%

Vitamin B1 - 239%

Vitamin B2 - 83%

Vitamin B3 - 80%

Vitamin B5 - 67%

Vitamin B6 - 140%

Vitamin B9 - 102%

Vitamin B12 - 106%

Calcium - 73%

Iron - 109%

Magnesium - 232%

Phosphorus - 168%

Potassium - 149%

Sodium - 36%

Zinc - 75%

Copper - 219%

Manganese - 397%

Selenium - 99%

It contains all the essential amino acids, quite well balanced. 67 grams of dietary fiber. 2278 calories, with 54% from carbs, 37% from fat, and 9% from protein. Omega-6 is 17.9g, omega-3 is 38.6g. The omega-3 seems high, however it is all ALA or alpha-linoleic acid. ALA is converted into two other forms, EPA and DHA, which are then used in the acid cascades. EPA conversion is up to 15%, DHA conversion is up to 5%. This gives an EPA to omega-6 ratio of about 1:3 and a DHA to omega-6 ratio of about 1:10. This diet contains practically no Vitamin D, so that needs to be taken as a supplement.

It's a work-in-progress, as I've only developed this 2 weeks ago. But figured it might help someone.

Endocrine altering foods are very poorly understood. There are no comprehensive list of foods and the reactions that they cause. Both endocrine sensitivity and hormone hypersensitivity are genetic, from what I've been able to tell. These are personal observations, though, so I have no figures to back them up.

Cheers

P.s. Since I've changed my diet, my migraines have virtually disappeared. My migraines were being caused by a weak anaphylactic reaction. This reaction affected my baroreceptors, causing larger than normal fluctuations in my vasopressin levels whenever the weather changed. I'm guessing that a big part of that was an endocrine-wide fluctuation caused by unstable chaotic attractor(s). With the endocrine altering food out of the way, the chaotic attractor(s) have stabalized somewhat, making it more difficult to push the endocrine system into a chaotic state, thus fewer migraines. (If you haven't read much into chaos sience, then just ignore this last paragraph.)

[Guest Doll]

Hi!

I've been gluten-free for 2 months now and needless to say it has been an up and down rollercoaster. I'm having some weird issues and wondering if anyone out there has any insight....for the past 3 weeks now I've had major head symptoms, fogginess, that sometimes turn into headaches, and a general feeling of pressure in my head. I feel very stoned and out-of-it. However, my GI symptoms have improved alot...they are barely bothering me anymore. My GP thinks it is seasonal allergies, since there is major pollen in the air, etc. He gave me a prescription for astelin spray, but I haven't taken it yet. My nose is not stuffy...could seasonal allergies cause these types of symptoms (I've never had them in the past)? could this be gluten or food related; I am also free of dairy, and very careful about gluten...my sister (who also has celiac) thinks I may just be adjusting to the diet still...does it take this long to adjust to the diet? any ideas? thanks!

This does sound like allergies! You might want to go for allergy testing to confirm, and then follow through with treatment. Hope you feel better soon!

P.S. Make sure your doc gives you a full bloodwork panel, checks your blood pressure, and checks to see if you have fluid or pain in your sinus cavities.

[gfpaperdoll]

This works for me. For the stuffy nasal drip head stuff, eat broccolli & kale add in cabbage if you can have cabbage. also I am of course dairy free

For a good reference read "Eating Right for your Blood Type" it is not a gluten-free book, although the author does go into detail about how bad wheat & dairy are for some blood types, but if you take this info & put it with the gluten-free info that we know, then I think that is a good starting point to pinpoint any food allergies, intolerances, etc that you might have. The book was spot on for my blood type.