According to a new study, posted in the BMJ Open journal, diets that are high in salt may lead to disturbing headaches in human beings. The link with headaches is entirely independent of the ‘well-established link’ between headaches and high blood pressure that is believed to be the cause of common headaches.
The study is led by Dr. Lawrence Appel, Director of the Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, MD. It declares that headaches are common ailments all around the world and is one of the most frequently reported nervous system disorders.
Globally, 46% of adults report that they are suffering from an active headache disorder. It leads to many citizens enjoying a poor standard of living and being absent at work. According to Dr. Appel, a valid link between common headaches and high blood pressure has already been established.
However, there still needs to be a lot of evidence regarding the link between dietary factors like high sodium intake and headaches. Most of this research is focused on the consumption of Monosodium Glutamate also known popularly as MSG. According to American Heart Association (AHA), most of the citizens in USA consume around 3400mg of sodium every day. This is more than twice the 1500mg limit that is advised by AHA.
In order to figure out more regarding this link, the researchers randomly selected 390 participants. They were subjected to a Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet. It is primarily rich in fruits, vegetables and various low-fat dairy products that possess reduced saturated or total fats. Another group from the same number of participants was subjected to the conventional Western Diet.
The entire study consisted of 3 different periods spanning over 30 days each. Each participant had food with high sodium content in one period, intermediate levels of sodium in the second period and low sodium intake in the third period. After the end of each of these periods, the participants were required to complete a questionnaire regarding the occurrence and the severity of the headaches they experienced, if any.
According to the researchers, the people who consumed foods high in sodium equivalent to 8g a day suffered from one-third more headaches compared to people consuming foods low in sodium at 4g a day. The researchers stated that this difference was prevalent in both the Western and the DASH diet.
Based on this research, simply consuming a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, potassium and low in saturated fat doesn’t necessarily prevent the occurrence of headaches.
What kind of a diet do you follow? Have you been suffering from intermittent headaches? Do you think this discovery will persuade you to change your diet? Let us know in the comment section below.