Migraine
headaches are extremely common and can last from a few hours to three days.
Unfortunately, these headaches are one of the least understood and poorly treated medical disorders, since they are likely result of a complex interplay of
genetic, environmental, and neurological factors that vary from person to
person.
Moreover, the experiences of those suffering from migraines also vary
to a great extent. Besides the common symptoms such as throbbing, searing pain,
which may or may not be one-sided, some patients also experience “auras” prior
to onset, while others do not.
Migraines may also cause chills, sweating, nausea, vomiting, fever,
and/or sensitivity to light, sound, and smells in some cases.
Research has shown that more than 300 million people worldwide — about 6 to 7 percent of men and 15 to 18 percent of
women — suffer from migraine headaches, and an estimated 20 million migraine
attacks occur every single day.
Causes Of Migraine
The causes of migraines have been examined in a great number of
studies, but none of them can fully explain the occurrence of migraines in all
sufferers. Sometimes these theories can be conflicting, but the majority of
them asserts that the causes of migraine include:
– Excessive increase of blood
flow in the brain. On the other hand, some studies state that these headaches
are not preceded by constriction and decrease in blood flow, but
rather by an increase of nearly 300 percent. Nevertheless, once the migraine
attack is in full swing, circulation appears normal, or only slightly reduced.
– A neurological disorder related to nerve cell
activity. Migraines are believed to occur due to
a neurological disorder related to nerve cell activity that sweeps across
your brain, causing pain.
– Changes in the brain chemical
serotonin.Migraine pain is also believed to be caused in the case of
swollen and inflamed blood vessels, including those in the brain, as soon as
the levels decrease.
– Vascular constriction in the brain. Migraines may occur from initial blood vessel
constriction and a decrease in blood flow, followed by dilation and stretching
of blood vessels, which activates the neurons which indicate pain.
Vitamin deficiency and migraines
According to the
latest study, it was discovered that vitamin B6, B12, and folic acid
supplements cause a two-fold reduction in migraines over a six-month period.
This was also suggested by previous research, such as a 2004
study in the European Journal of Neurology, which pointed out that
migraine attacks can be avoided by consumption of high doses of B2 (riboflavin).
Moreover, levels
of homocysteine production can be increased by some gene mutations and
dysfunctions, which can make you more prone to migraine attacks. It was
discovered that vitamins B6 and B12 reduce homocysteine levels. In addition,
researchers found that depending on your genotype, one may need a higher or
lower dose in order for it to work.
According to
Professor Lyn Griffiths:
“… if all patients received the same vitamin dosage for
the same period of time it would be expected that those with TT genotypes,
having a reduced enzymatic rate, would metabolize less homocysteine over the
treatment period compared to C allele carriers, thus resulting in a smaller
reduction in homocysteine and consequent migraine symptoms.
Indeed, it may be that TT genotypes although having a
higher risk of disease actually require a larger dosage of vitamins to exhibit
the same effect as C alleles. Further clinical trials of much larger patient
cohorts are required to test this hypothesis.”
She furthermore
sais that their aim is to specify the optimal dosage of B vitamins based on the
genetic profile. She explained that:
“The success of our trial has shown that safe, inexpensive
vitamin supplements can treat migraine patients.”
Yet, migraine
symptoms may be caused by another, even more widespread, type of vitamin
deficiency.
A year ago, an
observational study at the 50th Annual
Meeting of the American Headache Society, found that around 42 percent of patients with chronic migraine
were deficient in vitamin D. Researchers also found that the longer
you suffered from chronic migraines, the more likely you are to be
vitamin D deficient.
This means that
these new findings can be tacked on to the numerous health
consequences of vitamin D deficiency.
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