Migraineurs often find that changes to their daily routine, such as fluctuating stress levels or sleep patterns or sudden food or beverage changes can trigger migraine attacks. Such triggers could include stress peaks and valleys, shifting sleep patterns or sudden food or beverage changes – among many others.
Keep a headache diary to identify potential triggers. Keep in mind that not every trigger may lead to an attack; several may need to occur for one.
Stress
Stress is one of the primary migraine triggers, as it raises levels of chemicals in your body which increase muscle tension and cause blood vessels to dilate, leading some people to report getting migraines on weekends when relaxing after an extremely hectic week.
Alterations to your normal routine, such as skipping meals or sleeping later than expected, may also lead to headaches. Long car and plane journeys often bring with them reduced sleep quality and an increase in stress levels that trigger migraines.
Bright light can also trigger headaches, particularly glare and flashing lights. To stay safe, it is wise to try to avoid these situations whenever possible; but if they occur anyway, make sure your sunglasses block out all but green light.
Caffeine
Caffeine, a naturally-occurring methylxanthine compound found in coffee beans, cocoa beans, tea leaves, kola nuts and guarana berries is often added as an ingredient to soft drinks and energy drinks. Caffeine acts as a stimulant and may trigger or exacerbate migraine headaches in certain people.
4.5% of migraine patients identified caffeine as a trigger. Furthermore, caffeine could play an integral part in causing premonitory stages of migraine attacks.
Coffee may contribute to headache by competing with adenosine at A2A and A1 adenosine receptors, blocking activation of trigeminal nerve pain pathways and leading to vasodilation. Caffeine’s adverse effects may involve multifactorial processes including receptor antagonism, inhibiting leukotriene synthesis inhibition, modulating cyclooxygenase activity modulation or decreasing leukotriene production; to minimize withdrawal symptoms it should be reduced gradually over time.
Bright Lights
Bright lights such as LED bulbs and fluorescent lighting have been found to aggravate or worsen migraine headaches, likely because light can activate nerve cells that send pain signals directly to the brain. Photophobia (visual disturbances caused by light exposure) can restrict a person’s work or driving abilities according to the American Migraine Foundation.
People suffering from migraine can also find relief from other sources besides lighting sources by using filters on electronic screens and sunglasses that block blue light, opting for warm-tinted bulbs with low Kelvin ratings as well as bulbs emitting green light – which has not been shown to worsen headaches. When experiencing new or unexplained symptoms it is always a good idea to consult your physician so they can determine your triggers and address them appropriately.
Foods
Many migraine sufferers report that certain foods and drinks can trigger attacks, including chocolate, cheese and dairy products containing tyramine; fizzy drinks with artificial sweeteners like aspartame; processed meats (such as bacon, hot dogs and lunch meats with high levels of nitrates and nitrites); fizzy beverages; fizzy beverages (especially ones containing artificial sweeteners such as aspartame); fizzy beverages containing artificial sweeteners like aspartame); fizzy beverages (like fizzy drinks); fizzy drinks; fizzy beverages; fizzy beverages with artificial sweeteners like aspartame); fizzy beverages (often contained artificial sweeteners such as aspartame); fizzy beverages (such as those made with artificial sweeteners like aspartame); fizzy beverages; fizzy beverages (usually with artificial sweeteners like aspartame); processed meats such as bacon, hot dogs or lunch meats which contain high levels of nitrates/nitrites in them).
Nitrates may cause blood vessels that constrict during a migraine attack to constrict, triggering headaches. Some individuals also find yeast products, like bread or bagels, can be triggers as well. Unfortunately, pinpointing foods as migraine triggers based on one experience alone or even multiple experiences can be challenging; to help identify possible foods or drinks as triggers it’s best to maintain a headache diary and identify possible foods and drinks as migraine triggers.
Hormones
Women may experience hormonally-triggered migraines during the premenstrual period. This often happens as estrogen levels drop during menstruation or its withdrawal as part of COC use, oral hormone replacement therapy (HRT) or when receiving bilateral oophorectomy procedures – factors which have all been known to lead to migraines in these instances.
Migraines caused by hormones are treated similarly to any migraine attack, including taking OTC pain relievers such as ibuprofen or naproxen sodium (Advil, Motrin IB) as well as migraine medicine such as triptans, ergots or calcitonin gene-related peptide antagonists (known as gepants) to block pain signals in the brain.
Identification of personal triggers is vitally important in managing migraine headaches and related symptoms, and should lifestyle adjustments and coping strategies not work, consult with a health care provider about additional treatment options.
