You’re here because you want to know what’s causing your red wine headaches. Well, I’ll tell you one thing: it’s not the sulfites, contrary to popular belief.
Back in 2019 when I was working as a social media coordinator, I received a comment saying, “I love your red wines and wanted to know why they don’t cause me headaches like most other red wines do.” This comment lead me to having a lovely chat with the winemaker over at Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery and he told me it’s either the histamines causing headaches or you’re simply drinking too much wine and not enough water. Red wines happen to have more histamines than white wines, which is probably why you can tolerate white wine more than red wine.
What’s a histamine?
A histamine is a chemical compound (C5H9N3) which is released by cells as an immune response to potential allergens and/or injury. If you’re allergic to something, your white blood cells will release histamine into the bloodstream to protect you from a particular substance, even if that substance is harmless. That’s why you take antihistamines if you have allergies (hence anti).
Usually fermented foods have higher levels of histamine including sauerkraut, aged cheeses, and wine. As the winemaker and I found out through that particular social media comment, some red wines have more histamines than others and that depends on the winemaking style.
Why isn’t it the sulfites?
If sulfites were the issue, then that means you’d get more headaches from drinking white wine or even eating dried fruit or lunch meats because they have more sulfites than red wine. You can even find sulfites in french fries and ketchup.
Sulfites occur naturally in wine as part of the fermentation process. Winemakers can also add sulfites to preserve the wine’s flavor and freshness and to prevent the wine from oxidizing. It’s really rare to have a sensitivity to sulfites (about 1% according to the FDA), so if you regularly eat dried fruit and haven’t had a reaction, then it’s extremely likely that you’re not sensitive to sulfites.
You’ll probably notice that every wine bottle you pick up says, “Contains sulfites.” This is required by the FDA in order to keep that 1% safe and not because the FDA wants you to avoid sulfites completely.
How do I prevent red wine headaches?
Well, if red wine causes you to get headaches, you could stop drinking red wine altogether. I’m lactose intolerant and I still eat cheese without a care in the world, so if you’re anything like me, it’s probably unlikely that you’ll stop drinking red wine. Limiting your intake could work or just drink more white wine than red wine.
Something we should all be practicing is drinking a glass of water in between glasses of wine. It’s a good idea because not only will it prevent hangovers and headaches, but cleansing the palate is important while drinking wine, so you can accurately assess a wine.
Just like how people with cat allergies take antihistamines an hour before they see their cat owning friends, you could try that with wine. An hour before you start drinking, take an antihistamine and see if that helps with the headaches.
However, I should note that I am not a medical professional, so you should ask your doctor before taking an antihistamine before drinking.
