YOU DOCS | Figure out triggers that cause head to throb, take steps to avoid them
I've always suffered with frequent headaches, and I think that when the air pressure changes, they are more intense. Are weather-related headaches possible?
A. Headache triggers vary from person to person. What makes your head throb (humid, hazy days, for example) might not do your best friend a bit of harm. But many headache sufferers do find that the pounding comes on when the weather flip-flops.
If you're prone to these types of triggers, make checking the forecast part of your morning ritual. Then pack some meds.
But be alert to other things that might cause your head to hurt. While 50 percent of people in one study were found to be susceptible to weather-related headaches, 62 percent thought they were. That suggests other factors are at play.
If you know that certain foods, drinks or situations -- such as coffee, red wine or listening to scary corporate earnings reports -- aggravate your headaches, don't set yourself up by piling on the triggers.
Q. What are sugar alcohols? Do I need to avoid them if I'm trying to cut down on sugar?
A. Sugar-alcohol sweeteners are made by adding hydrogen atoms to sugars, and they have a multitude of names, including sorbitol, xylitol and mannitol.
Sugar-alcohol sweeteners have one thing going for them: They don't spike your blood sugar as much as the regular stuff, because your body can't absorb them well. What many people don't know is that sugar alcohols are almost as caloric as the genuine article.
Q. I've heard that I'm supposed to avoid palm oil. Does that also apply to canned or bottled hearts of palm?
A. You're right that palm oil is to be avoided: It's high in saturated fats.
But hearts of palm are a different story. These little veggies are the tender inner portion of the cabbage palm tree. The canned-in-water varieties that are most common on grocery shelves are low in calories (41 per cup!) and virtually fat-free (1 gram per cup).
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King Features Syndicate
