In a study of 182 migraine patients at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine, patients were evaluated for severity and frequency of headaches after eating certain foods for 16 weeks.
In fact, scientists suspected that an imbalance of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids may trigger migraines and other severe headache attacks. Treatments with medications were sometimes so inadequate beforehand that they did not lead to complete relief of the symptoms. Therefore, there had to be other factors why someone is prone to chronic pain conditions.
This gave the scientists led by Professor Doug Mann and study author Daisy Zamora the idea for this analysis: with the help of test subjects divided into three groups, the scientific team found that the frequency and intensity of pain varied depending on the amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids ingested. The effect of beneficial foods (increased intake of omega-3 fatty acids) is therefore as great as ingested painkillers for migraine, according to the records of the electronic diaries of the participating migraine patients.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids such as omega-3 and -6 are not produced by the body itself, but must be taken in with food. If people eat too many processed products such as chips, crackers and cereals, in which many vegetable oils containing omega-6 fatty acids (linoleic acid) are found, this diet appears to trigger headaches and migraine attacks.
Omega-3 fatty acids (eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid), on the other hand, are found in abundant fatty fish and inhibit chronic pain, the scientists found.
A healthy balance between the two essential fatty acids, which the body depends on through external supply, is important to prevent the human organism from being plagued by pain because both fatty acids are precursors for signaling molecules in the headache process. An imbalance must therefore be avoided.
Source: www.heilpraxisnet.de