Let’s be honest. Most of us have woken up with a headache after indulging in a few too many glasses of wine. This, friends, is what we call a hangover, and in this case we recommend you take two aspirin and drink lots of water.

But what about the folks who get headaches after just a few sips of wine? Although we’re lucky not to fall into this camp, Allie’s sister and several of our friends do, so we decided to find out why.

WINE HEADACHE THEORIES

One theory is that sulfites found in wine are to blame for such headaches. Sulfites are chemical compounds that are produced naturally by yeast during fermentation. They’re also added by winemakers to preserve the wine’s character, flavor, and color, as well as to prevent oxidation and fight off naturally occurring bacteria. While not all winemakers add additional sulfites, they’re a natural product of yeast, so almost all wines contain them.