22 Natural Remedies For Migraine Headache
A headache is a good indicator that your body is missing something – maybe you need to take a breather, drink some water or change the way you eat. You may have a vitamin or nutrient deficiency or a food sensitivity that is causing this built-up tension.
Migraines aren’t typical headaches. If you experience them, you know you may experience pounding pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound. When a migraine strikes, you’ll do almost anything to make it go away.
Severe migraines may require treatment with prescription or over-the-counter (OTC) medication. Talk to your doctor about a treatment plan that works for you.
Some potential triggers for a migraine are allergies, stress, smoking, alcohol, bright lights, and loud noises, strong smells, skipping meals, dehydration, irregular sleep, poor posture, low blood sugar and hormonal fluctuations.
Headache Causes &
Risk Factors
You may be wondering what causes headaches. In general,
headaches occur due to a combination of nerve signals sent from the blood
vessels and muscles in the head. What causes these signals to turn on is still
unknown. Headache triggers can include:
- Illnesses such as sinus infections, colds, fever or throat infection.
- Stress
- Eyestrain or back strain
- Environmental causes such as secondhand tobacco smoke, smells from chemicals or perfumes
- Heredity as headaches tend to run in families, especially migraines
- Food allergies
- Hormone imbalance
- Vitamin or mineral imbalance
- Aspartame
Types of Headaches
Tension:
This is the most common type of headache among adults and teenagers. Tension headaches are also known as stress headaches, chronic daily headaches or chronic non-progressive headaches. Causing mild to moderate chronic pain, they come and go over time.
Cluster:
These headaches are the most severe, but least common type. The pain is intense and can feel like a burning or piercing pain behind the eyes. Cluster headaches occur in groups over a period of time lasting from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. They may go away for months or years, but then come back.
Sinus:
Inflamed sinuses can cause pain in your cheeks, forehead and bridge of your nose. Usually other sinus symptoms, such as a runny nose, fever, pressure in the ears and facial swelling, occur at the same time.
Migraine:
Migraine headaches can last from a few hours to a few days and usually occur one or more times a month. People usually have other symptoms with migraines, including: sensitivity to light, noise or smells; nausea or vomiting; loss of appetite; and upset stomach or belly pain. A child experiencing a migraine headache may turn pale, feel dizzy, have blurry vision, a fever and an upset stomach.
Mixed Headache Syndrome:
This type of headache is also known as a transformed headache and includes symptoms of both migraine and tension headaches. Adults and children may both experience mixed headaches.
Here are remedies to deal
with a head ache .
Apply lavender oil
You can Inhale lavender essential oil to ease migraine pain. Research has it that people who inhaled lavender oil during a migraine attack for around 15 minutes experienced faster relief.
Research has shown that the use of lavender oil is a safe and effective treatment of migraine headaches. One study conducted in 2012 measured the results of inhaling lavender oil for 15 minutes.
The 47 participants were asked to record the effects every half hour, for two hours. Out of 129 headache attacks, 92 responded to the lavender
Lavender oil may be inhaled directly or applied diluted to the temples.
Use Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar offers health benefits like aiding detoxification, controlling blood sugar, regulating high blood pressure, reducing bone pain, promoting weight loss and relieving constipation.
1. Add one
tablespoon of organic apple cider vinegar to a glass of water.
2. Mix in
one tablespoon of honey.
3. Drink
this daily to prevent as well as treat migraines.
If you are not used to taking apple cider vinegar, start by taking one teaspoon and gradually increase the amount.
Use Caffeine
It's an ingredient in coffee and some other foods and drinks, and it may give you some mild relief. It could also help your body absorb some migraine drugs faster. But go easy. You can get dependent on your caffeine jolt, which can lead to withdrawal symptoms like fatigue and more headaches.
Magnesium is one of the most successful headache remedies, first of all, because it’s much safer than taking a painkiller. People who suffer from serious headaches, like migraines, often have low levels of magnesium, and several studies suggest that magnesium may reduce the frequency of migraine attacks in people with low levels.
Those prone to low counts of magnesium include people with diabetes, heart disease, alcoholism as well as those on diuretics for blood pressure.
Magnesium can block the pain-transmitting chemicals in the brain, and it can improve platelet function, which will help your body react to injuries and prevent bleeding.
Both oral and intravenous magnesium are widely available, extremely safe and inexpensive. Magnesium can be used safely by women who are pregnant. The most frequent side effect of magnesium is diarrhea, but lowering your dose or taking it less often can eliminate that issue.
Vitamin B2
It's also called riboflavin, and you can find it in milk, cheese, fish, and chicken. You can also take it as a pill. Studies show it may help you prevent migraines.
Manage the causes
Your migraines are sometimes set off by the food you eat or the conditions around you. Find out what brings on your pain and avoid it.
Some common trouble spots on the menu are red wine, aged cheese, and cured meats. Bright lights, staying at a high altitude, and strong odors can also be issues.
The calming and numbing effects of both peppermint and lavender oils make them perfect tools for finding headache relief.
Peppermint oil generates a long-lasting cooling effect on the skin.
Research shows that peppermint oil stimulates a significant increase in skin blood flow of the forehead, and it soothes muscle contractions. One study showed that peppermint oil, in combination with ethanol, reduced headache sensitivity.
Use Chamomile
Chamomile has anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, and soothing properties that help relieve migraines. Regularly drinking chamomile tea can also help prevent the problem.
When dealing with migraines, you’ll get best results using German chamomile (Matricaria recutita). So, when purching this herb, look for the label that says “German chamomile”.
- Steep two to three teaspoons of dried chamomile flowers in a cup of hot water for a few minutes. You can also add some lemon juice and honey. Strain and drink this tea three or four times a day for relief from migraine symptoms.
- Alternatively, prepare an herbal tea by steeping equal quantities of chamomile, horehound and meadowsweet in a cup of hot water for at least five minutes. Strain and drink it.
- Repeat as needed
Use Ginger
Ginger is known to ease nausea caused by many conditions,
including migraines. It may also have other migraine benefits.
According to research, ginger powder decreased migraine severity and duration as well as the prescription drug sumatriptan, and with fewer side effects.
According to research, ginger powder decreased migraine severity and duration as well as the prescription drug sumatriptan, and with fewer side effects.
Use Feverfew
Feverfew is a flowering herb that looks like a daisy. It’s a folk remedy for migraines. This herb contains a compound called parthenolide that relieves spasms in smooth muscle tissue and prevents inflammation. It also neutralizes prostaglandins that influence pain signals, thereby reducing pain.
- Prepare an herbal tea by steeping one teaspoon each of dried peppermint and feverfew leaves in a cup of hot water for 30 minutes. Strain and drink this tea a few times throughout the day. Continue until the pain subsides.
- You can also eat two or three fresh feverfew leaves daily or take dried leaf capsules (50 to 100 mg daily).
Note: Consult your doctor before
beginning use of a supplement.
B-Complex Vitamins
Sadly, millions of people are coming up short on one or more of the B vitamins and this is causing energy slumps, unhealthy blood cell and adrenal effects, foggy thinking and headache symptoms.
Many B vitamins are involved in the formation of neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, which may be deficient in people who suffer from migraines. A B-complex vitamin includes a group of eight water-soluble vitamins: thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, biotin and pantothenic acid. Together, these vitamins improve brain cells, circulation, immune function and cardiovascular health.
Note: B vitamins are water-soluble, so an overdose is rare. If there is extra in your system, it will be flushed out through urine. Studies indicate that while vitamin B2 may reduce the frequency and duration of migraines, vitamin B3 calms vascular headaches by opening up blood vessels to increase blood flow. Try taking one B-complex vitamin a day, as the benefits go beyond headache relief.
Peppermint And Honey
Peppermint has anti-inflammatory properties that help soothe the nerves.
Plus, it has an antispasmodic and calming effect. A study published in the International Journal of Neuroscience in 2008 found that the fragrance of this herb induces the feeling associated with headache relief.
- Simply drink peppermint tea sweetened with honey. Repeat as needed.
- You can also massage each of your temples with one drop of peppermint essential oil or a combination of peppermint and lavender oils.
- Leave it on for at least 20 to 30 minutes.
- Do this a few times a day until you get relief.
Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne pepper stimulates circulation and improves blood flow. Plus, it contains capsaicin, a compound that works as a natural painkiller.
Procedures
·
Mix one-half to one teaspoon of cayenne
pepper in a cup of warm water.
·
Optionally, add some lemon juice and
honey to improve the taste as well as health benefits.
·
Drink this as needed.
Use Gluten-Free Diet
Some people have gluten sensitivity. When these people eat foods containing gluten, it can lead to a headache.
You may not have celiac disease, but a gluten
sensitivity may give you a headache.
If this is the case, you don’t have to cut out gluten completely — instead, try to cut back on your daily intake.
If this is the case, you don’t have to cut out gluten completely — instead, try to cut back on your daily intake.
Start this headache remedy by eliminating gluten for three weeks,
then introduce foods containing gluten slowly. Pay attention to the way you
feel when adding more gluten to your diet and find your happy balance.
Note : Listen to your body you will find out how much of a food group you can eat without triggering symptoms.
Things you can do prevent or eliminate headaches
Use Ice Pack
Using an ice pack is perhaps the most popular home remedy to get rid of tension as well as migraine headaches. It has a numbing effect that alleviates pain.
- Wrap a few ice cubes in a clean towel and place it on your temples, forehead and/or the back of your neck
- Do this for 10 to 15 minutes. Repeat as needed.
Alternatively you can
use hot and cold compresses for about 15
minutes, as needed.
For better results,
add lavender and/or peppermint essential oils to the water for the compress.
Use a Detox Bath with baking soda
,essential oils and apple cider
A detox cleans your body and also rids your body of toxins that will make you sick and can be one of the best preventative headache remedies. To bring toxins to the surface of your skin,
·
Make the water as hot as you can
tolerate
·
Then, as you sit in the cooling
water
·
Your body will release the toxins.
Procedures
- Add a cup of baking soda to hot bath water. Baking soda kills bacteria, leaves your skin clean and smooth, and minimizes skin irritability making it a handy and inexpensive product.
- Add essential oil to your bath water there are so many surprising essential oil uses and benefits. The soothing, calming, invigorating and cooling qualities of these oils will release any pent-up tension that your body is holding on to, offering pain relief. Try lavender, peppermint, lemongrass, frankincense or sandalwood oil.
- Add two cups of apple cider vinegar to hot bath water. The ACV draws excess uric acid out of the body, and it provides joint pain, arthritis, gout and headache relief. ACV can also soothe sunburn, heal poison ivy, kill fungus and tone your skin — so there are some extra health benefits to this easy headache remedy.
Resting or sitting in a darkened room can help relieve symptoms and it can be a basic headache treatment at home, particularly if you are struggling with migraines.
Simply close your eyes and focus on relieving tension in your neck, back and shoulders.
You Can Do Yoga
You should note however that this can also be a headache trigger for some people. This activity, though, with its slower movements, is a safe alternative. It is said that regular yoga sessions cut the number of attacks you get and make them less intense when they do happen.
Staying in one position for an extended period of time, like sitting at your desk or computer, can lead to body tension and create headache symptoms. This position, with your head sticking out, puts an extra 20-30 pounds of pressure on your neck!
That is why such a position leads to major tension headaches. An easy way to avoid this chain reaction is to take a break every 30-60 minutes — stretch and move your head and neck around in a circular motion. This will relieve the built up stress and can help in avoiding headaches.
Try Sleeping Well
Too little or too much sleep can trigger headaches and lower your threshold for pain. Get some regular shut-eye to help stave off migraines. A normal sleep period is said to be between 6 to 8 hours each day
Try to have regular time for sleeping and waking up.
Drink a lot of water
Dehydration is one of the major causes of headaches .The dehydrating effects of coffee, sugary drinks and alcohol can certainly leave us with a killer headache. Most people simply aren’t getting enough water, which in itself can relive headache pain and symptoms.
You can also stay hydrated with fruits and vegetables with some even have a water content that’s over 90 percent. These include the following .
- zucchini
- cauliflower
- eggplant
- strawberries
- grapefruit
- cantaloupe
- cabbage
- spinach
- Cucumber
- celery
- radishes
- green peppers
- watermelon
A study done at the National Hospital for Neurology and
Neurosurgery concludes that there is indeed a water-deprivation headache.
Try Acupressure
Acupressure is the practice of applying pressure with the fingers and hands to specific points on the body to relieve pain and other symptoms. According to research, acupressure is a credible alternative therapy for people in pain from chronic headaches and other conditions.
A separate study found acupressure may help relieve migraine-associated nausea.
So There You Are With
All You Need To Avoid Migraine Head Aches
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