Headaches

[Renneme]

Lately since my overnight switch to lacto-ovo-vegetarianism, I have suffered MANY headaches. Is this due to my new diet?

Here's what I ate today so far, if it helps. (remember I'm lacto-ovo so I eat eggs and dairy)

Breakfast: A few bites of Berry Burst Cherios in 1% white milk, then a medium sized breakfast burrito - tortilla, scrambled eggs, cheese, tomatoes
Lunch: (at Burger King) Half of a BK Veggie burger (soy veggie burger from Burger King from Morning Star farms), medium french fries w/ ketchup, minute maid orange juice, water
Dinner (Burger King again): half a BK Veggie Burger, side garded salad - iceberg lettuce, some spinage and a little romane lettuce, 2 cucumber slices, 2 baby carrots, didn't eat the tomatoes- with Garden Ranch dressing; orange juice, water
what I'm having later: wisconsin potatoes (potatoes with cheese basically), maybe some cherrios, dunno what kind yet... we have 3 kinds haha, berry burst, regular, and honey nut. yoghurt possibly...

Thanks!:bobo:
-Renneme

[Elena99]

Honestly, if I was going to blame anything in that post, it would be the BK veggie burger. I also think you need more fruit. But that diet isn't bad. Is there anything that triggers headaches in you? Maybe you suddenly increased a food that's a trigger for you without realizing. Garlic is a trigger for me, I love garlic, but too much and I get a headache.

I know you consume dairy, not judging you on that, but that's another thing I noticed in your post. Are you consuming more than you did before? That's a common headache trigger, too.

[FreshTart]

Did you give up caffeine, or less then what you usually drink?
Are you drinking lots of water? It's getting hot in most places now and an increase in water is a good choice.

[FreshTart]

You're a teenage male, aren't you? Bah, you're probably hungry.

[Renneme]

I'm actually drinking a LOT less milk/eating a LOT less dairy (even though I still consume it I'm cutting back) and am drinking a lot more water. I don't consume much caffeine except on the weekends I drink like 5 cans a day.

[crystalteacup]

Try cutting some of the caffeine. I know it's hard, but it's murder on your body and mind. I'd suggest taking veggie multis and resting as much as you can. Sometimes, your body does kind of a 'cleanse' after you go veg. Mine did and I had similar symptoms. Your metabolism is changing. Eat as much as you feel you need to, you may need more than you think you need.

Remember, I'm not a doctor. If these symptoms continue, try talking to a dietition if you can afford it.

[FreshTart]

Try eating more and see how you feel.

[anthony11]

Maybe the processed foods contain MSG, though probably you would have noticed that before.

It's also possible that the headaches have nothing to do with what you're eating.

[bstutzma]

I would have to agree with Freshtart. That's not a lot of food for a teenage boy (let alone a tiny teenage girl.) I used to get headaches way back in high school when I didn't eat enough. That's very likely the issue here, not the vegetarian diet, but the "diet".

[nkace]

Get some more veggies & fruits in & that will help aside from not eating more BK.

[Michael]

I'm not sure how much you're eating compared to before but I tend to think it's hunger too. I get headaches when I don't eat enough.

[froggythefrog]

I would like to chime in on water -- if you drink coffee, especially if you drink a lot, reduce the amount you drink, and increase the amount of water you're drinking. Sometimes a person can unknowingly introduce new problems when they are concentrating on switching their diet. Neglecting water intake would be one mistake.

[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

Bumping this thread though I don't know if the original poster is around...

I just wanted to comment that the orange juice in the 'cartons' gives me a ferocious headache, I have narrowed it down specifically to this item, but have no idea WHY... the ingredients themselves don't seem to bother me when consumed in other forms -

I'm actually thinking it must have something to do with a combination of the citrus and the packaging or processing at this point - I virtually NEVER get headaches otherwise.

OJ in other containers (or from frozen) doesn't bother me and other items packaged in cartons (soymilk, tc.) don't affect me either.

Just wondered if anyone else has noticed this?

[anthony11]

That's a new one on me, TNS. Does it happen across brands / styles of OJ? Does it happen with, say, grapefruit juice in a carton too?

[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

I have tried other brands of OJ and it seems the same... haven't tried Grapefruit Juice, thats an idea though... <shrug> Mostly I just avoid OJ in those cartons now and no headaches...

[CountessKerouac]

I'd say lay off the "junk food", meaning salty soy products and bread. You do need a lot of food, but it's best to get it from quality sources!

Eat more beans, veggies, fruits, grains, and nuts! :)

[bstutzma]

So funny, I saw the title of the thread and the first thing I thought was "the person probably isn't eating enough..." - and then I saw my own post saying just that! Lol. At least my advice is consistent.... ;-)

[Ktgrrl20]

Holey Moses-eat more! I'm 5'1 and female and eat more than that!

[Fyvel]

Headaches can be a sign of iron deficiency. Try focusing on your iron intake (you should be doing this anyways). Work on increasing the amount of beans, lentils, nuts, etc in your diet. Wash them down with some OJ (the vit C will help you absorb the iron).

If possible, have your iron checked.

[zoebird]

i got a head ache from the sugar and the veggie burger. i found that the bk veggie, when i had it, gave me a head ache. but, it could have been the mustard or the bread or the tomatoes on it for all i know. anyway, it was nasty for me. perhaps the salts or something? perhaps it was the fries and not the burger?

but, too much white flour and sugar sends me through the roof. can't handle it. that's me though.

[helpmom40]

It sounds like you have cut out any sugar or natural sugar like fruit from your diet.? I did this and lasted only about 2 weeks. Had headaches and felt weak. Besides your sugar getting really low, I was told that your potassium levels can fall and really be serious to your health if you cut out certain foods and don't replace them with others that have similar vitamin content.

You may also have an allergy to one of the foods you're eating. I would keep a journal of what you eat and completely eat something different from day to day and see what effects you. If you still have the headaches I'd see a doctor to have your sugar levels, potassium level and other blood work checked.

Hope you feel better and good luck.