A study found that migraine patients with food allergies caused by food specific immunoglobin G (IgG) antibodies experience worse migraine, as well as increased anxiety and gastrointestinal symptoms. The study appeared in the Journal of Pain Research.
This study included 89 patients who reported migraines. The investigators identified 67 patients with one or more food specific IgG antibodies ≥50 U/mL (IgG positive group). This cohort was then further divided into subgroups based on differing numbers of food allergens.
The remaining study subjects without food-specific allergies were classified into the IgG negative group. The researchers then compared the frequency and severity of migraine, anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, dermatosis, and inflammatory cytokines between groups.
The results showed that patients in the IgG positive group were more likely to have longer time elapsed since diagnosis, experienced more frequent and severe migraine, and had an augmented risk of developing anxiety and gastrointestinal symptoms, along with higher IL-6 and TNF-α. The study found that subgroups with more food allergens generally had worse health conditions.
“Migraine patients with positive food specific IgG antibodies had worse migraine, anxiety, and gastrointestinal symptoms Inflammatory cytokines partially mediate the causal pathway between food specific IgG antibodies, migraine, and migraine comorbidities,” the researchers concluded.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34385841/
Keywords: anxiety, food, gastrointestinal symptoms, immunoglobulin G antibody, interleukin-6, migraine, tumor necrosis factor- α
