Migraine-Friendly Recipes: Sweet and Spicy Gingerbread Cookies for Holiday Fun (2024)

If we're going to indulge in a cookie this holiday season, we might as well choose one with the fewest potential migraine food triggers and the greatest potential to help us manage a migraine attack.This migraine-friendly gingerbread recipe can satisfy your sweet tooth and offer some migraine protection at the same time — a win-win!

Migraine Food Triggers Vary

These gingerbread cookies have fewer potential triggers and more nutrients than most desserts, making them one of our favorite holiday migraine diet recipes. However, please note that everyone'smigraine food triggersdiffer, so while this recipe has fewer known triggers, the effects on different people may vary. If you're sensitive, please make a substitution.

Just about every cookie recipe has twomain potentialmigraine triggers: eggs (a fairly rare food trigger; on the positive side,they alsoboost omega-3s), and sugar. If you're sensitive to either, this particular migraine diet recipe isn't for you; there are already enough triggers around the holidays!

Ginger for Migraine and Nausea

In addition to this being a ginger cookie recipe that you can thoroughly enjoy, it might even help with migraine prevention. The "superfood" in this migraine-friendly gingerbreadrecipe is fresh ginger, whichis packed with nutrients likemagnesiumthat help fight migraine.

Gingeris also a go-to herbal solution to ease one of the most common migraine symptoms: nausea. Drinking ginger tea, enjoying sliced fresh ginger root, and sipping ginger ale are the more traditional ways of leveraging ginger for migraine and nausea relief. However, ginger in cookie form is worth a try too, especially when 'tis the season!

More Ways to Get Relief From Migraine Nausea

Studiesshow that somewhere between 60% and95% of people with migraine experience nausea, so know that an upset stomach is not just your imagination. Luckily, approaching your attack with an acute migraine treatment should relieve migraine-related nausea along with symptoms like headache pain.

If yourmigraine nauseais too severe for solid food, andnausea medicationsare not an option, here are somenausea relief drinks(lemon juice, ginger tea, etc.) that could help treat nausea instead.

Recipe for Sweet Gingerbread Cookies

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 3/4 cup brown sugar*

• 4 tbsp golden syrup or corn syrup or agave nectar

• 2 tsp ground ginger root

• 1 medium egg* or egg substitute

• 1/2 cup butter

• 2 4/5 cups plain flour

Please note: Ingredients identified with an asterisk (*) are reported asmigraine triggersby some people.

Instructions

1. Sift the flour, baking soda, and ginger into a mixing bowl.

2. Rub in the butterand add the sugar.

3. Beat the egg and syrup and add to the flour mix.

4. Roll out onto a floured surface and use cutters of your choice.

5. Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheitfor 12 to 15 minutes until golden. Leave on a wire rack to cool.

6. Decorate however you like. Enjoy!

These gingerbread cookies are perfect for gingerbread stars, Christmas trees, wreaths, or your favorite shapes.

Tip: Make these ahead and freeze them for another day to help pace yourself during the holiday season.

Final Thoughts

Navigating the holiday season can be stressful enough for anyone — let alone those with chronic and potentially disabling conditions like migraine. How well we sleep, stay hydrated, avoid skipped meals, and manage stress can really get put to the test once November rolls around. Luckily, there are ways we can manage food triggers and maintain those healthy lifestyle habits that help keep migraine attacks at bay.

More than just a holiday treat, gingerbread cookies are one of the migraine-friendly recipes waiting for your sweet tooth. Why? Because it contains ginger, a migraine superfood. Ginger can help combat nausea, a common migraine symptom, and it has magnesium, which helps with relaxation.

So, whether you have a holiday party to attend or just want to treat yourself, try out this migraine diet recipe — it’s a simple and sweet migraine-friendly recipe!

While You Enjoy Your Gingerbread Cookies

• Check out these tips for managing migraine duringthe busy holidayseason.

• Work on your Christmas wish list:Here are some migraine-friendly gift ideasand somelight-hearted ideas.

• Build self-care into your routine with theseself-care ideas for people with migraine.

Other Migraine Diet Recipes

• Nonalcoholic Holiday Drinks

• Make a Big Batch of Migraine-Friendly Meatballs to Last All Week

• Potent Smoothie for Migraine to Help Prevent Attacks

Holly Gerring-Leone contributed to this article.