Wine and migraine: compatibility or incompatibility?
According to popular belief, alcoholic beverages are to be avoided in the case of headache, a term which includes migraine, the most common type of headache. An imbalance between pain transmission and inhibition has been suggested and partly proved to be the mechanism of migraine. This means that peripherally acting substances following wine intake are unlikely to trigger migraine attacks. We hypothesized that factors other than the mere consumption of alcohol can trigger migraine attacks. In an attempt to corroborate this assumption, we carried out a 14-month study in 307 volunteers. All the volunteers had no health problems apart from suffering from migraine without aura. During the entire study period, patients had to complete a diary/questionnaire every time they consumed alcohol. The questionnaires included items regarding the quantity (measured in dl) and the type of alcohol they consumed as well as information about their lifestyle. The volunteers also had to complete a pain diary. It was observed that spirits and sparkling wines were significantly (p > 0.0001) more frequently related to migraine attacks than other alcoholic beverages. Nonetheless, there was no statistical relationship between the consumption of alcohol and migraine attacks. On the other hand, a positive relationship was established between stressful events and the onset of migraine attacks. As an overall result, it was observed that low amounts of alcohol (i.e., 1 dl of 4-14% alcohol/vol. and 0.4 dl of 35-42% alcohol/vol.) did not induce a significant increase in the frequency of migraine attacks. Moreover, it emerged that alcoholic beverage intake during stress periods was related to a significantly higher frequency of migraine attacks (p > 0.0001 for spirits and sparkling wines, p > 0.009 for red wine and p > 0.006 and p > 0.004 for white wine and beer, respectively). Routine blood tests revealed that the subjects who prefer red wine showed a lower level (p > 0.05) of total cholesterol, independently of sex or age. Due to the small sample size (197 vs. 96 tested subjects), this last observation can not be regarded as conclusive.
Nicolodi
M
M
Internal Medicine Department, Florence University, Italy.
Sicuteri
F
F
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D013312:Stress, Physiological; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014920:Wine / Q000009:adverse effects*
D002784:Cholesterol