what to do for a caffeine withdrawal headache
During medical school, a neurologist taught me that the number one crusade of headaches in the US was coffee.
That was news to me! But it made more sense when he clarified that he meant lack of coffee. His betoken was that for people who regularly drink coffee, missing an early on morning cup, or even just having your first cup later than usual, can trigger a caffeine withdrawal headache. And considering how many daily coffee drinkers at that place are (an estimated 158 meg in the US alone), it'southward likely that java withdrawal is amid the most common causes of headaches.
Afterward in my neurology rotation, I learned that caffeine is a major ingredient in many headache remedies, from over-the-counter medicines such as Excedrin and Anacin, to powerful prescription treatments such equally Fioricet. The caffeine is supposed to make the other drugs in these combination remedies (such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen) work better; and, of grade, it might be quite effective for caffeine-withdrawal headaches.
But then I learned that for people with migraine headaches, certain drugs, foods, and drinks should exist avoided, as they tin trigger migraines. At the top of this list? Coffee.
So, to review: the caffeine in coffee, tea, and other foods or drinks can assistance prevent a headache, care for a headache, and also trigger a headache. How tin this be?
Migraine headaches: Still mysterious after all these years
Migraine headaches are quite common: more than than a billion people reportedly endure from migraines worldwide. Nonetheless, the cause has long been a mystery — and it all the same is.
Until recently, the going theory was that claret vessels around the brain become into spasm, temporarily constricting and limiting blood flow. Then, when the blood vessels open, the rush of incoming claret flow leads to the actual headache.
That theory has fallen out of favor. Now, the thinking is that migraines are due to waves of electrical activity spreading beyond the outer portions of the brain, leading to inflammation and overreactive nerve cells that send inappropriate hurting signals. Why this begins in the first identify is unknown.
Migraines tend to run in families, so genetic factors are likely important. In addition, chemic messengers inside the brain, such equally serotonin, may also play a central role in the development of migraines, though the mechanisms remain uncertain.
People decumbent to migraines may experience more headaches after coffee consumption (perhaps past effects on serotonin or encephalon electric activity), just coffee itself, or the caffeine it contains, is non considered the actual cause of migraines. Certain foods or drinks similar coffee are thought to trigger episodes of migraine, but the true cause is non known.
A new report near coffee and migraines: how much is too much?
In a new written report published in the American Journal of Medicine, researchers (including several from the hospital where I work) asked 98 people with migraines to keep a diet diary that included how ofttimes they consumed caffeinated beverages (including java, tea, carbonated beverages, and energy drinks). This information was compared with how ofttimes they had migraines. Here's what they constitute:
- The odds of having a migraine increased for those drinking three or more caffeinated beverages per day, but not for those consuming ane to ii servings per day; the effect lasted through the day after caffeine consumption.
- It seemed to take less caffeine to trigger a headache in those who didn't ordinarily take much of it. Just ane or two servings increased the risk of migraine in those who commonly had less than i serving per day.
- The link between caffeine consumption and migraine held up even after bookkeeping for other relevant factors such as booze consumption, sleep, and physical activity.
Interestingly, the link was observed regardless of whether the study subject believed that caffeine triggered their headaches.
Ane weakness of this study is that the researchers did not really measure caffeine consumption. Instead, they defined one serving of a caffeinated drinkable every bit 8 ounces of regular coffee, 6 ounces of tea, a 12-ounce tin can of caffeinated soda, or two ounces of an free energy potable. But caffeine content in different caffeinated beverages can vary widely. For example, an 8-ounce serving of coffee from Starbucks can accept twice the caffeine as a similar-sized serving from a Keurig One thousand-Cup. They also did not include caffeine-containing foods in the study, although such amounts tend to be quite small compared with the beverages studied.
The bottom line
In that location is a lot nigh the connectedness between caffeine consumption and migraine headaches that remains uncertain. Until we know more, information technology seems wise to listen to your body: if yous observe more headaches when you potable more than java (or other caffeinated beverages), cut back. Fortunately, this latest research did non conclude that people with migraines should swear off coffee entirely.
If you like java every bit much as I exercise, information technology may seem unfair that you need to continue drinking it to prevent a headache. And if you're decumbent to migraines, it might seem unfair that you lot have to limit your coffee intake to avoid headaches. Either way, you'd exist right.
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Source: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/if-you-have-migraines-put-down-your-coffee-and-read-this-2019093017897
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