AF Triggers

[focaltucker]

I have been trying to log over the years things I have eaten and drank prior to having an AF episode.

Whilst I am convinced most of mine relate in some way to dehydration, sometimes from alcohol or take away foods, there does seem to be links to one or two other possibilities and just wondered if anyone else had noticed any symptoms following on from the same triggers.

I have noticed a link to certain spicy food, often from restaurants / takeaways whilst out or socialising.

I am not sure if it's something to do with the spices themselves, sdditivrs or food colourings?

I make spicy food myself and never have an issue with my own ingredients regardless of what I make or how much kick it has.

But when you are eating from third parties and you don't know what's added to enhance flavour, colour or quanties of salt, that's when I seem to have a problem.

I had initially thought alcohol was always a party to the problem. But I have drunk plenty of times and had no issue. In the main it's been when I have also eaten something too, which I have had no control over the content.

Several times I have had an AF issue when there been zero alcohol, but spicy / dyed food consumed such as tandoori chicken (clearly dyed very red)

It could be excessive salt, but I just wondered if anyone else had experienced anything on the back of spicy food / food colourings or restaurant / takeaway flavour enhancement?

[Hidden]

Hello, focaltucker! I see that your last post was from 7 years ago, so your research has lasted quite a bit! It is what we need here - people being introspective enough, to be able to realistically judge about what's happening when AF comes to a visit. Nicely done!

Will you mind if I try to give my own contribution to AF triggers...? Taking food and drinks are the most obvious ways of interacting with the surrounding world, so people mostly pay attention to it. Taking artificial sweeteners, colorings, preservatives etc. in the food and drinks, means, actually, taking chemicals into the body and, yes, it can have negative influence on the body, like many medications have. But, there are less obvious ways, which are also of significant interrelation with us.

The less visible influences would be stress (no need to comment it, lol), going via nervous system, physical activity (many people have reported to have had an AF event after heavy work in the garden, after bending down too much, after reaching for something etc.), what also goes via the nervous system. The influence of weather conditions , which is also present, has yet to be explained, but most probably it goes via the influence of air pressure on the skin pressure receptors (weather changes are always connected with the air pressure changes and extremes). Maybe there are others, still less visible and known...

[focaltucker in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for the reply. Yes amongst food and drink I have also noticed other factors which appear to be an influence. One being air conditioning...

In hotels or warmer climates.

In the UK I seem to have very little trouble at all in the summer months where it's mild and humid. I have been mostly affected in late autumn and especially early spring.

So yes I have also seen seasonal affects which seem to reflect the weather or humidity within a room.

As you say I doubt very much it's down to just one or two factors but numerous that cause the issue and the environment has certainly played it's part with me also.

[Threecats]

Hi FT

I’m in persistent AF but still find a few things that make me much more aware of my AF. One is spicy food, specifically chilli and the other is coffee of any sort, even decaf. Of course I used to love both but don’t love the effects they have on my ticker! When I was in paroxysmal AF I spent a lot of time, like you, recording what I ate and drank in my search for triggers. The trouble I found is that, as Nesko has said, there are lots of factors influencing our body chemistry and so, for me, apart from the two I’ve mentioned, food triggers were pretty variable and I couldn’t get consistent results. I hope you have more success!

[Thomas45 in reply to Threecats]

Interesting that you mention coffee in all its forms. It is definitely a trigger for me. It's not the caffeine but some other ingredient in coffee which caused the problem. I drink tea, and cola, without any adverse reaction.Soy products are also a trigger for me.

I don't eat spicy foods, never have. I don't eat large meals or take aways, not even fish and chips, but would eat fish and chips if I could overcome the logistics of buying them. ( I am slightly disabled, can no longer drive, wear an ankle foot orthotic on my right foot, walk with a stick for balance. If I managed to get to the fish and chip shop, I'd need to eat them straight away, but I can't stand up and hold fish and chips to eat at the same time.)

[Oggy99 in reply to Thomas45]

Quite a few F&C shops deliver nowadays

[Thomas45 in reply to Oggy99]

Thanks. If I wanted more than one portion of fish and chips, it would be ok, but I live alone, in a village, and my local place doesn't deliver.

[BenHall1]

I started AF in Jan 2010. After many many months I found food ( my own personal family food consumption ) triggered AF. I then developed gut problems, diahorrea, massive and very painful bloating, burping and intestinal gurgling - not all at the same time. Of all of these the bloating would trip me into AF. My GP had my bloods checked for IBS and Coealiac Disease but these showed no problems.

I then consulted a nutritionist and following her advice I began a many year long journey of transformation and an improved gut. Calm the gut = calm the heart ! I am now just returning to foods I'd given up 11 years ago. Drinks of any sort have never been an issue for me whether it be tea, coffee, spirits, wines or lagers - whatever.... I just keep boozing on. The only alcohol I still cannot handle is beer in pubs off tap or draught beers ... and it all comes down to ingredients.

Over the years I have developed the view that whilst in some of my cases the food itself is a problem.... an equal or greater problem is ingredients. I would add that I have been added sugar free and added salt free for many decades.

I often dine out and have no problem with food at all ...... just follow the wholesome food guide my nutritionist instilled into me years ago. I DO NOT eat any spicy food. I am careful to select my Chinese resturant and certainly avoid anything with MSG. If the food isn't genuine I scrub it ! Interestingly, if I order a main course I like to taste the flavour of the meat, surf or turf. If I order a Lemon Sole I want to taste the fish .... I don't want to taste all the additional crappy herbs etc that some silly misguided chef heaps on the fish this depriving me of the taste of the fish but giving me plenty of herbs etc, that he thinks will improve the taste of my meal. They can't damn well help themselves if I state when I place my order I don't want this that or the other thats what I want and I have sent plates back.

I also emphasize that I am gluten free, wheat free and oats free. But mostly I go to resturants that pride themselves in being gluten free anyway. I would also say that I can eat very limited McDonalds takeaways while KFC generally gives me no problem at all, whatever the menu.

[Hidden]

I do think that additives such as MSG (monosodium glutinate) can cause reactions and I know that Chinese food in particular can often contain it. Not so much Indian though there's little information about what might be added in restaurants.

I can only suggest that you avoid eating any spicy/coloured foods for a few months and see what the result is.

Alcohol can trigger my AF too but generally it seems I'm okay if I only drink on a full stomach. I've found no hard and fast rule re triggers though. There's nothing that I can identify that always triggers AF and similarly nothing that I've found yet that leaves me AF free if I completely avoid it.

[secondtry]

Focussing solely on food triggers can be confusing as it depends what other cumulatory factors are at work eg on a good day you will be fine on a bad day the same drink/food will set your AF off. That's my theory anyway 😀.

[Buzby62 in reply to secondtry]

I thought your reply on another post a few days ago was a great way to look at it

healthunlocked.com/afassoci...

secondtry 2 days ago

The analogy I always have in my mind is that of a glass that gets filled up with 'AF causes' if it gets too full with one or usually multiple reasons even a small extra reason becomes the straw that breaks the camel's back and it overflows - hey presto you get AF.

[wwatson280283]

Hi there, I had my first experience of symptomatic PAF in 2016. It was a stressful time with my mother passing suddenly so no doubt that had a lot to do with my AF. However as a coincidence the evening that it started I had just consumed a Chinese carry out which was very tasty and as it turned out full of MSG. My HR at that time was over 220 bpm sitting watching TV. A trip by ambulance to A+E and 3 days in hospital in a cardiology ward followed. The cardiologist could not say what caused the symptoms. At the time having no other source of information about my sudden condition I became a Google detective and found some limited info about MSG and heart conditions. Needless to say I now request food with no MSG.

[ninks01]

Morning...gone through similar exercise, trying to figure what caused an episode. I feel my episodes are connected to the gut and salt has an impact. We used to treat ourselves to a M&S ready made meal about once a week but i had an episode after the last two occasions.....they were very salty.If we have the same meal but homecooked , no issue. I have also stopped alcohol (over two years)........very difficult but i think worth it for overall health......seems a bit late now i am 72 after having a 55 year social life that was pub based.......good luck

[Ozette]

I battled A Fib for 13 years and I never found a trigger. Also didn't understand how triggers work exactly. Is it immediately after consuming or doing something or after a few hours or next day? In that time I was a patient of 2 different cardiologists and three different Electrophysiologists (I moved across the county twice) and not one even mentioned triggers.

[2learn]

Ibuprufen, and all NSAIDs if I take more than one a month, sets my AF off. Paracetemol and codeine ok.