Each migraine sufferer will have different triggers that set off attacks; by understanding your personal migraine triggers you can avoid attacks in the future. A migraine trigger refers to any factor which causes headache symptoms.
Some triggers for asthmatic symptoms can be dietary, such as caffeine, chocolate and cheese; other may be behavioral in nature – skipping meals or experiencing stress for example; as well as seasonal changes and sleep deprivation being common factors.
1. Stress
Stress is one of the primary triggers of migraine, with many reporting regular headaches either increasing or decreasing as their stress level fluctuates throughout their day. This could include work pressure fluctuations, family or relationship tension, changes in sleep patterns or travelling; airplane cabin pressure variations often prompt attacks for many travelers.
Migraines can also be caused by light, sounds and smells as well as physical activity, changes in weather and hormonal fluctuations (particularly among women) – these changes are three times more likely to induce migraine headaches in female sufferers than in menstruating ones.
Keep a journal of your symptoms and events to help identify triggers. An overall improvement to lifestyle, such as getting enough restful sleep and eating a well-balanced diet with limited use of painkillers may also prove beneficial.
2. Dehydration
Many factors can contribute to dehydration. Caffeine and alcohol, foods containing histamine or MSG, chocolate, cheese and dairy products, salty foods and cured meats should all be avoided in order to stay hydrated. In addition, medical conditions like gastroesophageal disorders that lead to nausea or chronic diarrhea or menstrual disorders may also play a part.
Important to keep in mind is the difficulty associated with pinpointing and eliminating all migraine triggers, particularly when they are complex. Improving general lifestyle factors should help decrease migraine attacks over time; triggers may work differently for everyone and their effects often appear in combinations or patterns such as bright light being an aggravating factor when sleep-deprived, stressed out, consuming too much caffeine or skipping meals are present.
3. Food
Migraine triggers often involve food and beverages. Migraine sufferers may identify chocolate, caffeine or monosodium glutamate (MSG) as potential migraine food triggers; other victims report foods containing aspartame, MSG or yellow/red dye can cause headaches as well. A diary can be helpful in identifying potential dietary migraine triggers; once identified they should eliminate them for one or two weeks to see if their migraine attacks decrease in frequency.
Note that avoiding certain migraine triggers does not guarantee they won’t resurface – for instance, a woman could still have an attack if she skips meals, feels overwhelmed and gets her period – these could all be potential triggers in her case; eliminating these factors won’t prevent migraine attacks altogether.
4. Alcohol
Migraine triggers are substances or events that increase your likelihood of experiencing migraine headaches, including foods, drinks and substances such as tobacco smoke. To effectively avoid migraine headaches it’s important to become familiar with and try to avoid all potential triggers; learning your individual set will allow you to do this more successfully.
Alcohol can be an easy trigger of migraine headaches, with red wine possibly being especially susceptible due to its higher concentration of the substance tyramine.
Tyramine is a chemical that increases histamine release, narrowing blood vessels in your head. Therefore, avoiding foods and drinks containing histamine is one way to avoid migraine headaches.
5. Light
Over 80% of migraine patients find light–whether natural sunlight or fluorescent lighting in the office–to be the source or aggravator of their headache pain, known as photophobia and the second most prevalent symptom of migraine after headache itself.
Researchers are researching what causes light sensitivity, as well as treatment solutions. So far they’ve discovered that certain wavelengths — particularly blue light — seem to trigger migraine attacks while other wavelengths don’t pose issues.
This could be connected with intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) found in the retina. Although not directly responsible for sight, these ipRGCs coordinate involuntary functions like circadian rhythms and pupillary light reflexes – they could even play a part in migraine onset.
