"Migraine diet"? All about brain energy deficits and the remarkable role of bedtime snacks

"Migraine diet"? All about brain energy deficits and the remarkable role of bedtime snacks 

Migraine brains are built for high performance. Many people may not know this, but the brain of a person with migraine generally picks up stimuli more quickly and processes them faster than a non-migraine brain. Sounds like a superpower, but there’s also a downside. To work well and stay healthy, a migraine brain needs a lot of energy. If the brain of a person with migraine enters an energy deficient state, migraine attacks can occur – these are intense headaches with disabling symptoms that dominate the person’s perceptions, often overshadowing their ability to think clearly, whatever their usual cognitive capacity.

Energy supply to the brain: central to preventing migraine attacks

The first step in preventing migraine attacks is making sure the brain has enough energy. Simply put, the brain always needs enough glucose to work properly. Despite its enormous energy needs, the brain has no real fuel tank. It cannot store large amounts of glucose for later use. If the supply runs out, the brain quickly feels the shortage. That is why it is so important for people with migraine to make sure their diet provides enough glucose to fuel their brain.

Two things are crucial: what you eat and when you eat it. If you eat foods that allow your metabolism to provide the brain with a steady supply of glucose, and if you eat regularly so that this supply is never interrupted, you are doing a lot to prevent migraine attacks from developing in the first place.

A balanced blood glucose level helps prevent migraine

The amount of glucose available to the brain is indicated by the blood sugar level. The key rule in migraine prevention is to keep your blood sugar level steady and sufficiently high.

In general, it is recommended to eat complex, whole-grain carbohydrates, such as those found in whole-grain bread, oats, vegetables, pulses (beans, peas, lentils, chickpeas), and whole-grain pasta or rice. These foods take longer to digest than simple sugars, providing the brain with a slow, steady supply of energy. Simple sugars are mostly found in foods that contain refined sugar, such as sweets (wine gums, chocolate bars, etc.) and sugary drinks, but also in jam, chocolate-hazelnut spread, or sweet breakfast cereals. Foods made from refined white flour (which do not contain whole grain) also provide quickly digestible carbohydrates even if no sugar is added. Examples include toast, white bread, or crackers. All of these foods release glucose into the body very quickly. But why is this a problem, if glucose is exactly what the brain needs?

Blood sugar fluctuations can trigger migraine attacks

Eating foods high in simple sugars causes blood sugar to rise quickly and sharply. This triggers the release of the hormone insulin. Insulin signals to body cells to take glucose from the blood, lowering blood sugar again. Hunger signals are sent to the brain again, tempting us to reach for the next portion of simple sugar. These ups and downs in blood sugar are particularly problematic for people with migraine. If the energy supply fluctuates too much, migraine attacks can easily occur.

If you pay attention to your sense of fullness after eating, you can see these differences in glucose supply for yourself. For example, a meal of whole-grain bread with hummus and vegetables keeps you full much longer than jam on toast. Eating regular meals throughout the day that are slowly metabolised into glucose prevents energy shortages and reduces cravings. If you still want to snack, it is best to do so immediately after a main meal. Eating sweets after a balanced meal has far less impact on blood sugar than snacking on sweets throughout the day.

A bedtime snack helps prevent a nighttime energy deficit

Many people with migraine experience attacks early in the morning, right after waking up. It may seem strange, since sleep seems like a time when the brain rests and should not run out of energy. In fact, the brain is very active at night. It carries out tasks that are essential for the health of the whole body (see this article), and it needs sufficient energy for this. People with migraine therefore need to pay attention not only to daytime meals, but also to preventing an overnight energy deficit.

For many, a small bedtime snack helps prevent morning attacks. The snack should contain enough complex carbohydrates to provide glucose to the brain through the night, but not overburden the digestive system, which is slower at night than during the day. Many people find that a slice of wholemeal bread with butter and cheese or a little honey works well.

Achieve regularity in your daily routine

After getting up, don’t wait too long to have breakfast. Never skip breakfast. Keep your brain well supplied with energy right from the start of your day. Headache and migraine expert Prof. Hartmut Göbel, founder of the Kiel Pain Clinic, has the following advice: "People with migraine usually do well when they eat foods that grow in the fields, rather than food from factories or wrapped in plastic. After breakfast, lunch should follow by about 1 pm. If you get hungry before then, snacks such as nuts, trail mix, sunflower seeds, or pine nuts are good choices. They release carbohydrates slowly, which is ideal for the nervous system." (A more detailed article on the 'right' diet for headaches can be found here.)

Staying hydrated is also essential for healthy brain function (see this article). Along with drinking enough, it is important to do so regularly. Start in the morning and continue throughout the day. Two litres is a good general guideline; in hot weather or when exercising, you may need more. Plain water is the best choice. Unsweetened tea can be a good alternative.

Individual prevention: recognising patterns and adjusting your routine

To reduce the likelihood of attacks, it is important for people with migraine to identify and manage their individual challenges in following a diet that is healthy for their brain. It is often not easy to figure out exactly what triggered the last attack. Keeping a simple record of your eating habits over time can help. Writing down what you ate and when, as well as which meals were skipped, can reveal patterns and allow you to gradually adjust your eating habits in daily life. This works especially well with the app, which records these factors in a diary and highlights correlations with migraine attacks in its analysis. The app also allows you to set reminders for regular mealtimes – bedtime snack included – and for staying hydrated, encouraging you to maintain these habits every day.

Published: December 2025