1: Int J Neurosci. 1994 May;76(1-2):61-9.

Neuropharmacological evaluation of movement disorders that are adverse reactions
to specific foods.

Gerrard JW, Richardson JS, Donat J.

College of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada.

Three cases are reported of patients who had episodic movement disorders
triggered by foods or components of the diet. In the first patient, the movement
consisted of shaking the head from side to side that was triggered by milk and a
number of other foods. In the second patient, the movement consisted of a
repeated shrugging of the shoulders that was triggered by egg and coffee. In the
third, the movement consisted of rhythmic contractions of the arms and legs that
were triggered by aspartame. The first patient agreed to participate in a study
in which she drank 250 ml of skim milk, an amount sufficient to trigger head
shaking, after pretreatment with drugs known to alter neurotransmission across
beta-adrenergic, dopaminergic, GABAergic or purinergic synapses. At the doses
used, propranolol and diazepam had no effect on the milk evoked movement
disorder. Levodopa (plus carbidopa) blocked the reaction to milk. Haloperidol,
salbutamol and theophylline by themselves triggered a reaction similar to that
evoked by milk. These observations suggest that, in susceptible individuals,
foods can trigger movement disorders through an action on dopamine and other
neurotransmitter pathways in the brain. A videotape of the reactions of the first
two patients is available.


PMID: 7960470 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]