"Study Connects Migraine With Celiac & Irritable Bowel"

Do forgive me for talking about such indelicate matters so early on a Friday morn - but alas the stomach and migraine is, well, a pain in the butt. Just yesterday I had another of my giving birth-esq stomach spasms that required my poor mother to administer wet flannels and mugs of hot peppermint water while I groaned on the loo. This reminds me that I really must talk to the Queen about recommending mother for the New Years honours list. 

I was also reminded that I a) need to have my follow-up visit with the dietician who put me on a clever diet that is meant to help with these spasms (which I have obviously been forgetting to follow) and b) write the blog post that tells you all about this clever diet. It's amazing the thoughts one has whilst in the bathroom. 

Appropriately, this week the migraine advocate and educator extrodinaire Teri Robert posted a link to a new US study  that confirmed what apparently we in Europe proved long ago: that there is a known prevalence between those who have celiac disease/and or irritable bowel and migraine. The results are quite astounding:

Study results:

(GS = gluten sensitivity)

Chronic headaches were reported by

• 30% of celiac disease group,
• 56% of the GS group, and
• 23% of IBD group. 
• Compared with 14% of control subjects.

There was a significantly higher prevalence of Migraine by ID-Migraine criteria:

• 40% in the celiac disease group,
• 21% in the GS group, and
• 14% in the IBD group,
• Compared with 6% in the control group.

When rating the impact of Migraine:

• 72% of participants in the celiac disease group graded their Migraines as severe;
• 60% of those with GS graded theirs as severe;
• 30% of the IBD group graded theirs as severe; and
• 50% of the control group with Migraines graded theirs as severe.
• There was o correlation between years following a gluten-free diet and Migraine severity.

Although these results may come as no surprise to a lot of migraine patients - they suggest that migraine specialists and neurologists should make screening for celiac disease and gluten sensitivity a routine part of initial investigations. I was astounded to realise that the first time I was ever officially tested myself, was last summer by a Gastroentorologist. He was the first Doctor, after 13 years, who had ever suggested this as a possible trigger, despite me always mentioning my delightful stomach spasms. Though he did say that they were, most likely, a result of gastric stasis that occurs during (and they're discovering outside) migraine. In the end my results came back negative but he still referred me onto a dietician, much to my chagrin. And I'll tell you all about that meeting in another exciting blog post. 

But for now, if you still can't pin point your main trigger it really is worth looking into whether or not you might have celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity. I know a few migraineurs who have cut out gluten from their diet with incredibly positive results. It hasn't eliminated all of their migraines but cut out a large chunk - which is something I know many of us would wish for. 

Study Links & Further Info:

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1526-4610.2012.02260.x/abstract

http://www.healthcentral.com/migraine/c/123/157128/connects-irritable?ic=2602

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001280/

http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/celiac-disease/features/gluten-intolerance-against-grain