Sulphur has been used in winemaking since time immemorial. It is not dangerous as used in winemaking -- except possibly to <1% of the population and those with asthma, although the reported reaction isn't migraines.

Sulphites are also found in dried fruits, fruit juices and many other products that do not to have the 'contains sulphites' warnings on the label. Wine sold in the USA have to have this warning - and as of November 2005 so do wines sold in EU.

Reaction to wine may be caused by many factors, including alcohol, histamines and - yes - sulphites.

There is an interesting and detailed article on wine and health, sulphites and possible reactions here :-

http://winepros.org/wine101/wine-health.htm

"Today, the use of the additive sulfur dioxide (SO2) is an almost universally accepted winemaking practice. Sulfur dioxide is best known to most as the food additive 220 or 202. It is a substance that has a simple chemical structure; two oxygen atoms bound to a single sulfur atom. Although it is naturally produced in small amounts by wine yeast during alcoholic fermentation, most of the SO2 found in wines has been put there by the winemaker. It is added at most stages of the white winemaking process, from crushing through to bottling. It is used less liberally during red winemaking, but with an almost mandatory addition being made following the completion of the malolactic fermentation of these wines. SO2 is added in the form of a powder, or is directly fed into the wine as a gas from a dosing gun.

Many would be aware that sulfur dioxide can cause severe allergic reactions in some people. So why do winemakers use it? Put simply, it is very difficult to make wines that have an aging potential beyond a few months if sulfur dioxide is not used during winemaking. A big statement but true.

Sulfur dioxide plays two important roles. Firstly, it is an anti-microbial agent, and as such is used to help curtail the growth of undesirable fault producing yeasts and bacteria. Secondly, it acts as an antioxidant, safeguarding the wine's fruit integrity and protecting it against browning. Despite its chemical simplicity, SO2 can take on a few different forms in a wine. One form is called 'molecular SO2'. When in this form, it is around 500 times more effective in killing wine microbes than when in any of the other forms that it can take (Sneyd et al. 1992). Luckily for us, the desirable yeasts that undertake wine fermentation are more resistant to SO2 than most of the spoilage yeasts. So having some SO2 around helps give the desirable bugs a leg-up in their competitive dog eat dog world in which they co-exist."

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Originally posted by winkle

Dear friends
I have a friend that would like to know more about Sulphites. She has noticed that if she has a wine with this in it causes a migraine.

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