What causes headaches

Who has never suffered even for one day from a severe headache? And what is a migraine? Should we worry when we have it? What causes headaches What are pharmacological remedies and natural remedies?

There are many questions regarding headaches, a prevalent condition that afflicts millions of people worldwide.

Table of Contents

All the numbers of headache

 

1/10 Headache affects about 1 in 10 people in the world during their lifetime, especially in Western countries, in the female gender, and the period of most excellent work productivity
25-55 22-55 years is the age most affected, the working-age
3/4 About 3 out of 4 women report having suffered from headaches in their lifetime
1/2 More than half of men report having suffered from headaches in their lifetime
5 Headache accounts for about 5% of family doctor visits
30 Headache accounts for about 30% of visits to the neurologist
20 The World Health Organization has included headache among the 20 most disabling diseases for women of working age
2 The World Health Organization has decreed that the most frequent disease globally, after dental caries (1st place), is a headache.

 

Causes and types of headache

Headache, barring head injuries or undiagnosed underlying diseases, is seldom caused by a single factor. It is, in fact, a multifactorial condition, i.e., genetic, anatomical, social, and environmental elements that come into play that acts as stimuli that trigger alterations in the mechanisms of pain.

Usually, the factors that can trigger headache attacks are many and vary from person to person.

Among the main ones are:

  • Environmental factors
  • Disturbances in sleep
  • Changes / Hormonal factors

There are specific stimuli such as, for example, stress, caffeine, or other foods, an incorrect posture that causes extreme pain in specific areas of the head and neck that are very sensitive to pain (muscles, arteries and veins, nerves, bones, and eyes).

Headache is therefore classified according to its characteristics: intensity, duration, and location. The main one describes below. 

  • Intensive headache. It is the most frequent of all. It’s characterized by a continuous headache often localized on both sides of the head. Of mild intensity. Associated with a sensation of muscle tension in the temples. It often subsides during sleep but can recur on awakening. With a fluctuating pattern often linked directly to the moment’s level of anxiety or stress (for example, to workload, relational stress, etc.). Therefore, the pain or sense of tension can be felt up to the shoulders and jaw muscles with a specific variability from individual to individual. Unfortunately, it’s not just about headaches. Many people who suffer from it also describe a state of generalized malaise, anxiety, weakness, lack of concentration, or depression. This condition is often limiting on the working, social and emotional level.
  • Migraine: What causes headaches

  • It is widespread. The pain is described as intense and throbbing in nature. The frequency is very variable (from a few episodes per year to 2-3 attacks per week). It affects only one side of the head (although it sometimes includes both sides) and generally involves the forehead and temple. The pain usually gets worse with movement(e.g., climbing stairs). What causes headaches compromising daily activities. Different stimuli or situations trigger attacks: food (such as alcohol), hormonal (such as menstruation), stress, weather changes, Healthy lunch ideas trauma, strain, sensory stimuli (intense lights or smells and noisy environments), altitude, fever, poor postures, and medications. Although more rarely, migraine attacks can be preceded (a few hours earlier) by a series of neurological symptoms that fall under the name of ” aura. ” The aura lasts from a few minutes to up to an hour. Patients usually report having blurred vision, tingling arms, or difficulty speaking.

  • Cluster headache. It is the most severe headache but also the most easily recognizable. It is an excruciating headache. Patients ( especially men in this case) report enormous suffering, with agitation and nervousness. The attack has a short duration, almost always involves only one side of the head, and is always associated with ocular and nasal problems such as tearing or losing fluid from the nose. It is called “clusters”. What causes headaches because the attacks tend to be concentrated during the day, often at fixed times (for example, after meals or during the night). Alcohol intake is an essential factor that can trigger crises.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis of headache is purely clinical. That is, an accurate visit by the treating physician or neurologist is sufficient, without necessarily having to resort to more critical investigations such as Computerized Axial Tomography-CT scan or MRI or other similar investigations. Doctors usually use these diagnostic methods only if there is a real need, so there is a suspicion of an underlying disease causing the headache.

Among the aspects to investigate are the familiarity (if 1st-degree relatives suffer from some form of headache), What causes headaches the onset and duration of the attacks, the triggering factors of the seizures, the location and intensity of the pain, the presence of associated symptoms, aggravating factors and any therapies in place.

Each headache provides a specific and tailor-made treatment. For this reason, it is essential to consult a doctor.

Therapy and remedies: What causes headaches

There is no natural cure for headaches. You can intervene on the symptoms by taking one or more drugs simultaneously, or you can help the patient understand the causes to try to eliminate them.

Stress, ‘ alcohol, the poor posture are factors that sometimes trigger headache attacks and, indeed, if avoided, they improve the quality of life. Therefore, assuming correct behaviors helps a lot and represents the first thing to do in the face of headaches. Abolishing What causes headaches cigarette smoking and alcohol, doing yoga or acupuncture, learning muscle relaxation techniques, avoiding unpleasant and stressful situations at work are just some examples of the therapies to be put into practice against migraines.

Furthermore, headaches are incredibly variable. The psyche plays a critical role. Each of us “experiences” the headache in our way, so it is challenging to set up a therapy that is the same for everyone.

Generally, aA classic pain reliever (paracetamol, indomethacin, or other over-the-counter drugs readily available in pharmacies without a prescription) can be helpful for tension headaches and migraine attacks Best fitness tracker of the modest entity. At the same time, triptans are essential for more severe attacks. A class of drugs that have been in use for a long time effectively reduces migraine pain.

Tension Headaches

Antiemetics or cortisones can also use or the combination of two or more drugs among those mentioned, but, as there are no precise guidelines in treating headaches, the choice of the best drug for that specific patient is referred to the treating doctor.

There are many cases in which a drug is effective in one patient and not in another, which is why headache therapy is defined as “stepped,” that is to say you start with a drug and proceed gradually to experiment with others or combine them until total relief of symptoms is achieved.

Some therapies can prevent and avoid future attacks. And include drugs usually used for other problems. Such as beta-blockers and antiepileptics calcium channel blockers. For those who have been suffering from severe headaches. Attacks for a long time or antidepressants.

Did you know that: What causes headaches

  • The headache was already described extensively in the texts of the philosophers of ancient Greece, especially that associated with the consumption of wine.
  • Climate changes can trigger migraines and headaches. These are the so-called “meteoropathic” people. Best meal replacement shakes There is even a ” sirocco syndrome ” or discomfort triggered by the alternation of hot and dry winds.
  • Although, according to some studies, sex relieves headaches, there is a “sexual intercourse headache , ” a rare form of headache that occurs just as intercourse is being consumed.
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