Red Wine Headaches Perplexing
Dan and Krista Stockman
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN
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You’ve just had a fabulous steak dinner with an even more fabulous big, red wine. It was the perfect meal with the perfect company.
But you suddenly find you have a headache. Or, maybe you don’t notice it until the next morning.It can’t be a hangover, you think, because you only had a glass, maybe two of the wine. You were never drunk.What’s happening? Many will tell you that you have an allergy to sulfites and should stick to white wines despite your love of reds.We’re here to tell you that’s wrong.Many people get headaches from red wine, and what causes it exactly is a little bit of a mystery.
But the condition is so common there’s even a name for it – Red Wine Headache. You heard us: If you get headaches from red wine, you may be suffering from RWH.Sulfites get the blame for the headaches most often. But it turns out only about 1 percent of the population is truly allergic to sulfites, which are found in most wines – red and white. And because sulfites act as a preservative, you’ll find them in a lot more places than just your favorite bottle of wine.If you can eat dried fruit and guacamole without a problem, you likely don’t have a sulfite allergy. And if your only symptom is a headache, that’s another sign you’re not allergic to sulfites. Those allergic to sulfites will also experience coughing, wheezing, itching and even hives.If that’s not happening to you, it’s probably something else in the wine that’s bothering you. Some people blame the tannins found in red wine.
Tannins come from the grapes and their skin and act as a natural preservative for the wine. It’s why red wines often have the ability to age longer than white wines.But studies haven’t been able to prove that tannins cause headaches. In fact, said University of California-Davis wine chemist Dr. Andy Waterhouse, studies have proved that lots of things do not cause red wine headaches – but no one knows what does.
Oct 30, 2005
Dan and Krista Stockman
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN
____________________
You’ve just had a fabulous steak dinner with an even more fabulous big, red wine. It was the perfect meal with the perfect company.
But you suddenly find you have a headache. Or, maybe you don’t notice it until the next morning.It can’t be a hangover, you think, because you only had a glass, maybe two of the wine. You were never drunk.What’s happening? Many will tell you that you have an allergy to sulfites and should stick to white wines despite your love of reds.We’re here to tell you that’s wrong.Many people get headaches from red wine, and what causes it exactly is a little bit of a mystery.
But the condition is so common there’s even a name for it – Red Wine Headache. You heard us: If you get headaches from red wine, you may be suffering from RWH.Sulfites get the blame for the headaches most often. But it turns out only about 1 percent of the population is truly allergic to sulfites, which are found in most wines – red and white. And because sulfites act as a preservative, you’ll find them in a lot more places than just your favorite bottle of wine.If you can eat dried fruit and guacamole without a problem, you likely don’t have a sulfite allergy. And if your only symptom is a headache, that’s another sign you’re not allergic to sulfites. Those allergic to sulfites will also experience coughing, wheezing, itching and even hives.If that’s not happening to you, it’s probably something else in the wine that’s bothering you. Some people blame the tannins found in red wine.
Tannins come from the grapes and their skin and act as a natural preservative for the wine. It’s why red wines often have the ability to age longer than white wines.But studies haven’t been able to prove that tannins cause headaches. In fact, said University of California-Davis wine chemist Dr. Andy Waterhouse, studies have proved that lots of things do not cause red wine headaches – but no one knows what does.
Oct 30, 2005
