Migraines can be debilitating, yet treatable. Making small adjustments – such as getting enough restful sleep or keeping a headache diary – may help decrease migraine frequency and severity.
No one knows exactly what causes migraines; however, they often run in families and can be linked to food additives (particularly nitrates ).
Identify Your Triggers
Migraines can be easier to control when you recognize and eliminate triggers. Many people have found that red wine, caffeine withdrawal and stress are among their triggers; keeping a diary to record these details may help identify and avoid migraine headaches in future.
If your migraines tend to start when you miss meals, try eating at the same time each day to see if this helps. Also keep track of other triggers – weather and menstrual cycle changes could contribute to migraines; while stress or skipping meals could also play a part. You might discover it’s actually multiple triggers at play that lead to migraines – like skipping meals combined with stress.
Get a Good Night’s Sleep
An inadequate sleep schedule is known to trigger migraines, so getting sufficient rest each night is vitally important. Aim for at least seven to nine hours of restful sleep every night. Avoid overexposure to heat or cold as either may serve as triggers.
Migraines are severe, throbbing headaches typically affecting one side of the head and often associated with visual disturbances (photophobia and phonophobia), weakness, nausea and vomiting. Other premonitory symptoms may occur prior to an attack such as food cravings, mood changes (depression or euphoria), fatigue, uncontrollable yawning and fluid retention.
Over-the-counter pain medicines like aspirin or ibuprofen may be sufficient to manage mild migraines. Your healthcare provider may prescribe stronger drugs, or daily preventive pills to lower migraine frequency.
Eat a Balanced Diet
Certain foods have been associated with migraines in studies or by those living with them; keeping a headache diary (whether printed out or app-based) and monitoring your diet can help identify potential triggers such as aged cheese, chocolate and caffeine as potential migraine triggers.
If you believe a food or drink may be contributing to your symptoms, try eliminating it from your diet. Any major changes should be discussed with a healthcare provider or dietitian so as not to deprive yourself of necessary vitamins and nutrients.
As well as avoiding foods known to trigger migraines, it may also help to increase consumption of magnesium- and omega-3 fatty acid-rich foods, which has been shown in several studies to reduce migraine symptoms. Examples include leafy green vegetables, avocado and tuna.
Stay Hydrated
Consuming adequate fluids is important for everyone, but especially important for those living with migraines. Dehydration can both trigger migraines and make them worse while being an associated side effect of their headache itself.
Consume water or electrolyte beverages (sports beverages) throughout the day to replenish what your body loses through sweat and urine output. Caffeinated drinks should be avoided as they can contribute to dehydration and cause headaches.
Keep a diary to help determine whether dehydration may be contributing to your migraines, or use an app like Headache Tracker Pro to track pain patterns and triggers so you can find ways to change your lifestyle or use medications to manage them more effectively.
Exercise
Regular exercise programs are key in both reducing migraine attacks and maintaining a healthy weight. Multiple clinical trials have demonstrated how aerobic exercises, like walking, cycling, swimming, jogging and dancing can lower both their number as well as intensity and duration of migraine attacks.
Strength training and yoga can also be effective ways of relieving tension and relieving stress levels, as well as increasing mood while releasing endorphins that provide natural pain-relief chemicals.
High-intensity interval training (HIIT), is another effective form of exercise that can reduce migraine headache frequency and intensity. To get the most benefit out of it, start slowly and gradually increase the frequency and duration of workouts each week until they become an integral part of your routine – this way you won’t risk overexerting yourself, which could trigger an attack.
