Some Factors In Migraine Prevention

When trying to mitigate the severe headaches known as migraines, every possible approach is going to be useful. On the one hand you have researchers and doctors exploring the underlying causes of this illness, with the hope that once they fully understand the causes and mechanisms involved, they will have a better idea of how to respond with effective treatment. But one of the aspects of migraine prevention lies partly in the migraine patient’s own hands, and might be something the person can actually control.

One of the biggest advances in the research has been with regard to migraine triggers. A great many of these have been discovered, falling into two categories: controllable and uncontrollable. Uncontrollable triggers might be things like changing weather patterns. For example, big swings in barometric pressure, a high humidity, and certain types of wind can all trigger a migraine. One might think migraine prevention would be impossible when it comes to these factors, but they might at least be mitigated to some extent.

Another type of migraine that some feel falls into the “uncontrollable” category would be the menstrual migraine. After all, a woman can’t very well just stop menstruating to prevent a headache. Yet the trigger here seems, at least in part, to be either too much or too little estrogen. Menstruating women can’t entirely control their estrogen levels, yet they might be able to alter the dosage to some degree in their birth control pills. And post-menopausal women can certainly adjust dosages in their hormone replacement therapies. So migraine prevention might even be possible in these cases.

This leads into other triggers that are classified as controllable. Most of these involve foods, smells or even light. People who suffer from chronic migraines might notice that particular foods, like peanuts, citrus, chocolate, or products containing MSG seem to bring on a headache. Or they might react to paint fumes or the strong perfume of the person in the next cubicle. Eliminating these triggers wherever possible can be a real aid in migraine prevention.

The Mayo Clinic advises that a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and sleep patterns, lower stress levels, and regular meals can also work toward migraine prevention. But detecting one’s triggers and removing the controllable ones can be the biggest step one can take with regard to migraine management, and might actually prevent the onset of one of these headaches even if there’s an uncontrollable trigger coming, like a big change in the weather.

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