Very Hot/Spicy Foods

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tntsher
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Apr 30, 2007 11:30 am
Location: Illinois

Very Hot/Spicy Foods

Post by tntsher »

I'm not sure if anyone else has noticed this about their WED/RLS, but when I eat extremely hot foods (Habanero, Scotch Bonnet, Ghost or Trinidad Scorpion Peppers), my WED/RLS kicks in HARD and almost immediately! I have severe WED/RLS, have had it since childhood (over 50 years), getting worse over all those years. My only med that helps is Permax/Pergolide, which I have to buy from UK since it was taken off the market in US about 8-10 years ago.
I can be eating lunch, well before my symptoms begin and if (or when) I eat foods with these VERY hot peppers I will immediately get a reaction in my legs and usually, a pretty severe reaction. Of course, most of you would say "Don't eat those stupid peppers then"...but unfortunately I really enjoy them. I also figure that sometime in the day I will get a reaction anyway and usually, if it is later in the day I will take at least 1 of my Permax.
I mention this for one reason....possibly these very hot peppers could be tested to see what it is that causes such a reaction and could hopefully lead to another med to combat WED/RLS.

ViewsAskew
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Location: Los Angeles

Re: Very Hot/Spicy Foods

Post by ViewsAskew »

How fascinating. Some people have no reactions to any food. Some, like you, have very specific reactions that few others also have. I imagine someone else does have the one you have, but I don't recall anyone saying so. Then, there are a few foods - such as caffeine, sugar, and gluten - that seem to have small groups of people who all react.

There are so many of these substances - I honestly don't know how they'd test them. But, it's definitely something worth thinking about.

For what it's worth, I'm in the sugar camp, but very rarely. Most times, eating sugar does nothing to me WED. But once in awhile. I eat it and within 15 minutes, I'm CRAZY with symptoms. One of my friends has mild WED, though, and ONLY has it when he eats sugar. He avoids it - I was at a birthday party with him a few months ago and he didn't even eat his own birthday cake, because he knew he'd have WED.

I wonder how all of these could be related - what reactions happen (such as insulin rising, other hormones rising or falling, and so on) when a person eat? And how could that create symptoms?????
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

badnights
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Re: Very Hot/Spicy Foods

Post by badnights »

Bad bugs in the gut can cause neurological symptoms, because some of their metabolic byproducts that end up in our bloodstream are damaging to neurons. The bugs can also cause leaky gut, in which larger molecules enter the blood than should be able to, and those molecules can trigger an immune response. What if some combination of toxic bacterial byproducts and immune response triggers WED in genetically susceptible people? Then it wouldn't matter what the trigger was.

A flimsy theory, but perhaps this is the direction our thoughts should be heading.
Beth - Wishing you a restful sleep tonight
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I am a volunteer moderator. My posts are not medical advice. My posts do not reflect RLS Foundation opinion.

Yankiwi
Posts: 548
Joined: Wed Sep 10, 2014 7:20 am
Location: West Coast, South Island, New Zealand

Re: Very Hot/Spicy Foods

Post by Yankiwi »

I keep well away from caffeine (except chocolate) but can eat anything else without affecting either my stomach or WED. If avoiding any food would keep WED away, I'd do it like Views' friend. I've done "tests" by eating intense "Death by Chocolate" types of desserts and found no affect on my WED.
My husband, who doesn't have WED, has a very sensitive stomach and lots of things make him feel awful but homemade pro-biotic yogurt, fermented sauerkraut (not the canned version) and sourdough bread helps his gut.

ViewsAskew
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Joined: Thu Oct 28, 2004 6:37 am
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Re: Very Hot/Spicy Foods

Post by ViewsAskew »

badnights wrote:Bad bugs in the gut can cause neurological symptoms, because some of their metabolic byproducts that end up in our bloodstream are damaging to neurons. The bugs can also cause leaky gut, in which larger molecules enter the blood than should be able to, and those molecules can trigger an immune response. What if some combination of toxic bacterial byproducts and immune response triggers WED in genetically susceptible people? Then it wouldn't matter what the trigger was.

A flimsy theory, but perhaps this is the direction our thoughts should be heading.


Well, all research starts somewhere, flimsy or otherwise!
Ann - Take what you need, leave the rest

Managing Your RLS

Opinions presented by Discussion Board Moderators are personal in nature and do not, in any way, represent the opinion of the RLS Foundation, and are not medical advice.

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