Migraine headaches (sometimes called chronic headaches) are moderate to severe recurrent headaches, often occurring on one side of the head, which may last from a few hours to several days. It is estimated that about 6% of men and 18% of women sufferer from migraines in the U.S.
Characteristics of chronic headaches
The pain of migraine headaches is throbbing or pounding in nature and usually occurs on one side of the head during a particular attack, though it usually changes sides with subsequent attacks. A headache that always occurs on the same side of the head suggests that there may be another cause for the headache other than migraine. Attacks may also involve both sides of the head and are usually worsened by day to day activities.
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Other symptoms that you may have with migraines include:
- nausea
- vomiting
- diarrhea
- cold hands and feet
- pallor of the face
- sensitivity to light and sound
Up to 1/5 of migraines are accompanied by an aura in the form of
- bright flashing lights
- a black hole in the field of vision
- pins and needles in the arms, hands, mouth and nose
- hearing strange noises
- strange tastes
- strange smells
What Triggers Migraines
These are factors that may cause a headache if you have a tendency towards migraines. These triggers vary between individuals. Even in the same person, different factors may trigger a headache at different times.
Examples of known migraine triggers
- Food (lots of triggers here!)- chocolate, monosodium glutamate, cheese, cigarette smoke, vinegar, sour cream, nuts, pizza, avocados, peas, onions, fermented, pickled and marinated foods, peanut butter, bread with yeast, coffee cakes, doughnuts, beans except green and wax, canned figs, pork, yogurt, citrus fruits, herring
- Emotional stress
- Changes in eating and sleeping habits,
- Bright lights, loud noises, strong smells, smoke, environmental temperature changes
- Medicine especially oral contraceptives
Hormones and migraines
There is a relationship between the levels of female sex hormones in the body and migraines. All of the following can affect the frequency and severity of migraines:
- menarche (onset of menstruation in young girls
- use of oral contraceptives
- pregnancy (high estrogen levels)
- menstruation (low estrogen and progesterone)
- use of oral contraceptives
- perimenopause (fluctuating hormones)
- menopause (low estrogen and progesterone)
Menstrual migraine headaches usually occur from 2 days before to 1 day after a period. Some migraine sufferers experience more headaches around the time of their period.
Only about 1 in 7 migraine sufferers can identify what triggers their headaches. Also, avoiding the known triggers is not a guarantee that headaches will not occur.
Diagnosis of migraine headaches
Migraine headaches usually start in the late teens and early 20s. A migraine occurring for the first time later in life should be treated with suspicion as causes other than migraines are more likely (e.g. hypertension, brain tumor e.t.c.). Diagnosis of migraine headaches is made by identifying the symptoms I’ve mentioned already.
