Here Are 4 Myths And Facts About Migraine

Migraine Myths Busted: On average, migraine pain lasts for four hours to three days in people (can sometimes be prolonged). Migraine is more common in females than in males. Moreover, it can be related to genes in families as well as changes in the brain. Migraine can also be triggered by various reasons like fatigue, strong light, headaches, weather changes etc. There are certain myths related to migraines! Let us also tell you some facts related to these myths.

4 myths related to migraine and the facts behind them

Myth 1: Migraine is just a headache

• Often people think that migraine is just a headache, whereas there is nothing like it.
• Migraine is a neurological disease, with occasional, functional and structural changes in the brain.
• There is an international classification framework for headache disorders that doctors use to measure headache pain.
• The American Migraine Foundation has set several criteria to determine this for people suffering from migraines. 

Fact: Migraine is different from headache because its duration, severity and symptoms differentiate in many other ways.

Myth 2: Caffeine is the cause of migraine

• Caffeine is not always the cause of migraine, rather caffeine is found in some of the most effective headache medications.
• For many patients, caffeinated drinks like coffee or soda help reduce headaches.

Myth 3: Only women and adults have migraine

• Migraines can also occur in children (under five) and they may experience severe migraine headaches.
• Women are three times more likely to have a migraine but don't forget that men also suffer from migraine.
• 18–20% of women, then 8–10% of men also suffer from migraines.
• Therefore it is wrong to associate a particular age group and gender with any disease.

Myth 4: Take more and more medicines to cure migraine

• Unfortunately, people tend to think of taking more and more medicines cures migraines. But this is a myth as it can make it worse.
• Some people living with migraines complain of "rebound headaches", but the medical term for that phenomenon is 'Medication Overuse Headache'.
• Taking too much medication to treat the pain of acute migraine may present a risk of more frequent and more severe migraines in the future.

Measures to avoid migraine

• Commonly triggered migraines include alcohol, gluten, monosodium glutamate and histamine-rich foods, dark chocolate, etc. So to cure it, reduce or stop the consumption of these things.
• The best remedy for migraine is to know the reason behind that trigger and try to avoid it.

(Source: American Migraine Foundation.Org)

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