I was very surprised to find out that white wine contains MORE sulfites than red wine because NO ONE complains about headaches caused by sulfites in white wine. Of course, there are other conclusions one might draw, namely the red wine headaches are not caused by the sulfites, and white wine drinkers are panty waists who don't enjoy the wine enough to drink to a headache the next day (tongue planted firmly in cheek :-).
p.s. Thankfully, I'm not one of those customers the Editor refers to in his note.
Sirenita
· 7 months ago
Wow. do you even realise how condescending the tone of this post is to people with sulfite sensitivity? You suggest that either people who complain of headaches after drinking wine are so susceptible to hearsay that they imagine pain, or that you know more about the situations of their life than they do. For all your know, the person you spoke to might have been in Europe for stressful business reasons. My sensitivity towards sulfites is strong enough that even traditionally made balsamic vinegar is off the menu for me, and if you knew just one thing about me it would be that I love cooking, cooking with wine, and all things wine related so would never inflict a life without them on myself unless it was a last resort (which it is).
You say there is no medical proof that sulfites cause the headaches, but from a medical or at least scientific point of view all that means that a) they are not able to prove I have a headache, and b) they can't prove that this unprovable headache is caused by the sulfites.A third possible explanation is that since people with sulfites sensitivity experience generalised tissue swelling (in asthmatics, this trigger cause asthma attacks), and that it is this generalised swelling which causes headaches, In other words, it's a secondary reaction so sulfites do not cause it directly. Either way, this does not diminish the size of the headache I get when I have a single half pint of cider, drink bottled fruit juice, or eat a canned soup for dinner.
I understand your love for wine and wish to protect it's reputation, but please, there's no need to talk down to others. We may be a "minimal, minimal number of people" but we are not making this up. Thank you.
Ryan Opaz
· 7 months ago
There are exceptions always. And as we state "Only a minimal, minimal number of people have been documented as allergic to sulfites. One study puts the number at just .25 % of the population" So if your in that .25 of the population you have a right to be concerned, and we never said that you are making it up. The real issue is that most people are not allergic to sulfites and if you work in wine retail you hear this complaint all the time from people who are happy to chomp down on smoked bacon(full of sulfites) without complaint and yet complain about them in wine!
We in no way are talking down to others, just trying to dispell the myth. In the end the leading causes of headaches in "most of the population" from drinking wine are caused either from the HIstamines, a very common problem, or from finishing the bottle!
All Comments
I was very surprised to find out that white wine contains MORE sulfites than red wine because NO ONE complains about headaches caused by sulfites in white wine. Of course, there are other conclusions one might draw, namely the red wine headaches are not caused by the sulfites, and white wine drinkers are panty waists who don't enjoy the wine enough to drink to a headache the next day (tongue planted firmly in cheek :-).
p.s. Thankfully, I'm not one of those customers the Editor refers to in his note.
You say there is no medical proof that sulfites cause the headaches, but from a medical or at least scientific point of view all that means that a) they are not able to prove I have a headache, and b) they can't prove that this unprovable headache is caused by the sulfites.A third possible explanation is that since people with sulfites sensitivity experience generalised tissue swelling (in asthmatics, this trigger cause asthma attacks), and that it is this generalised swelling which causes headaches, In other words, it's a secondary reaction so sulfites do not cause it directly. Either way, this does not diminish the size of the headache I get when I have a single half pint of cider, drink bottled fruit juice, or eat a canned soup for dinner.
I understand your love for wine and wish to protect it's reputation, but please, there's no need to talk down to others. We may be a "minimal, minimal number of people" but we are not making this up. Thank you.
We in no way are talking down to others, just trying to dispell the myth. In the end the leading causes of headaches in "most of the population" from drinking wine are caused either from the HIstamines, a very common problem, or from finishing the bottle!