red wine headache
{{short description|Headache often accompanied by nausea and flushing}}
{{Cleanup-ICHD|date=March 2024}}
{{Medref|reason=Many unsourced claims and uncited references to studies. Insufficient for a medical article.|date=November 2017}}
Red wine headache ("RWH") describes a headache, often accompanied by nausea and flushing, that occurs after consuming red wine by susceptible individuals. White wine headaches have been less commonly reported. {Lucerón-Lucas-Torres M, Ruiz-Grao MC, Pascual-Morena C, Priego-Jiménez S, López-González M, Álvarez-Bueno C. Association between wine consumption and migraine: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cross-sectional. Alcohol Alcohol. 2025 Jan 19;60(2):agaf004. doi: 10.1093/alcalc/agaf004. PMID: 39950360; PMCID: PMC11826089.}
Speculative causes
=Sulfites=
Many wines contain a warning label about sulfites, and some people believe that sulfites are the cause of RWH and other allergic and pseudoallergic reactions. However, this may not be the case.K. MacNeil The Wine Bible pg 34 Workman Publishing 2001 {{ISBN|1-56305-434-5}} Dried fruit and processed foods like lunch meat have more sulfites than red wine. Reactions to sulfites are not considered a "true allergy" and reactions more commonly occur in persons with asthma and may manifest themselves in difficulty breathing or skin reactions, rather than headache.{{cite web|title=Sulphites - One of the ten priority food allergens|url=http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/pubs/securit/2012-allergen_sulphites-sulfites/index-eng.php|publisher=Health Canada|access-date=2 May 2014}}
Some wines may be exempt from including a sulfite warning. Wines that have under 10mg/L of sulfites do not need to be labeled that they contain sulfites. This includes added and natural sulfites, like sulfites that come from the soil, or those produced by yeasts during alcoholic fermentation. Wines labeled "100% Organic", "Organic", "Made With Organic Grapes", "Made With Organic and Non-Organic Grapes" or without organic certification may contain sulfites, and must disclose this on the label. This also means that the so called "Natural" wine can also contain sulfites. Different rules might apply in different countries.{{cite web|title=Guidelines for Labeling Wine with Organic References|url=http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5077433|publisher=US Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Marketing Service|access-date=2 May 2014|archive-date=28 August 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090828040316/http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5077433|url-status=dead}}
=Histamine=
{{main|Histamine intolerance}}
Red wine intolerance is supposedly linked to histamine intolerance. Histamine, a biogenic amine involved in immune responses, gastric acid secretion, and neurotransmission,{{cite journal |vauthors=Reese I, Ballmer-Weber B, Beyer K, Dölle-Bierke S, Kleine-Tebbe J, Klimek L, Lämmel S, Lepp U, Saloga J, Schäfer C, Szepfalusi Z, Treudler R, Werfel T, Zuberbier T, Worm M |title=Guideline on management of suspected adverse reactions to ingested histamine: Guideline of the German Society for Allergology and Clinical Immunology (DGAKI), the Society for Pediatric Allergology and Environmental Medicine (GPA), the Medical Association of German Allergologists (AeDA) as well as the Swiss Society for Allergology and Immunology (SGAI) and the Austrian Society for Allergology and Immunology (ÖGAI) |journal=Allergol Select |volume=5 |issue= |pages=305–314 |date=October 5, 2021 |pmid=34651098 |pmc=8511827 |doi=10.5414/ALX02269E}}{{Creative Commons text attribution notice|cc=by4|from this source=yes}} has been identified in varying concentrations in different types of wine. One study observed that red wine contained significantly higher levels of histamine compared to white wine.{{cite journal|last=Maintz|first=Laura|author2=Novak, N |title=Histamine and histamine intolerance|journal= The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition|date=May 2007|volume=85|issue=5|pages=1185–1196|doi=10.1093/ajcn/85.5.1185|pmid=17490952|doi-access=free}} However, another study demonstrated that some red wines have minimal histamine content.{{cite book|doi=10.1007/978-3-642-55447-6|isbn=978-3-642-55447-6|date=10 November 2014 |title=Histamine Intolerance | veditors = Jarisch R }} For instance, an analysis of histamine levels in 100 varieties of Austrian red wines from the 2004 vintage revealed a significant variation in histamine concentrations. This inconsistency in histamine content among red wines, coupled with the lack of reproducibility of symptoms in patients, raises questions about the validity of the clinical diagnosis of headache as a histamine-induced adverse reaction following red wine consumption.
See also
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- Alcohol (drug)
- Alcohol flush reaction
- Browning in red wine
- Food intolerance
- Hangover
- Headache
- Wine and health
- Wine fault
- Potomania
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