What causes headaches and what should you do about them?

Nowadays, people are under great pressure in study and work. It can be said that headache is a common problem for people nowadays. Headache will not only affect normal work, but also is one of the most important factors affecting the quality of life. Of course, there are many reasons for headache. For example, if you drink some alcohol in daily life, it is easy to have a headache the next day. For example, women are also prone to headache symptoms during their menstrual period.

So what should you do if you have a headache? Is there any way in life to relieve the symptoms of headache? Let us learn about it together.

70% of migraine patients are women, which can be said to be a very common symptom among modern working women. So why are women more likely to suffer from migraines? How can migraines be prevented and treated?

Factors that trigger migraines

Chen Haibo, director of the Department of Neurology at Beijing Hospital, said: "The factors that trigger migraines are not yet fully understood. They are mainly related to genetics, gender, fatigue, vascular inflammation, and dietary structure, but it is certain that more women suffer from migraines than men."

Women are prone to migraines before menstruation because a large amount of prostaglandins are released in the blood before and after menstruation, which can relax smooth muscles, dilate blood vessels, and disrupt the vascular contraction and relaxation function.

In addition to women being prone to migraines before menstruation, there are other factors that can also trigger migraines, and these factors often lurk in places you can't see.

Physical factors: Various causes that can cause inflammation and injury inside and outside the skull; traction, stretching, displacement, and expansion of blood vessels due to compression by tumors; irritation of the meninges; muscle contraction; direct stimulation of the sensory nerves that control the head and face, etc., can all cause headaches.

Neuropsychiatric factors: When the body and mind are adversely stimulated by the external environment, emotions such as worry and anxiety often arise, leading to the onset of migraine. According to a survey, 84% of depression patients suffer from migraine symptoms. At the same time, when encountering various unpleasantness in life or work, or intense emotional stimulation such as anger, anxiety, excitement, etc., you will feel general discomfort and migraine.

Dietary factors: Drinking too much coffee will dilate blood vessels and stimulate nerves to cause migraines; eating too cold ice cream will also cause headaches; drinking too much alcohol will cause the ethanol in the alcohol to act on the blood vessels and also cause headaches. These are all headaches caused by improper diet. Experts have calculated that the foods that are likely to induce headaches are: chocolate, alcoholic beverages, raw dairy products, lemon juice, cheese, and red wine.

Sleep factors: This is a common cause of migraine. Headaches are caused by severe lack of sleep, and stressful work can also cause similar symptoms.

Disease factors: lesions of the eyes, ears, nose and sinuses, teeth, neck, etc. can stimulate the nerves, reflexively or diffusely affecting the head and face, causing reflex or referred migraine.

Ways to relieve migraines

Ice pack cold compress: Put ice cubes in an ice pack or wrap it in a towel and apply it to the area of ​​headache. Once the blood vessels in the cooled head constrict, the symptoms will naturally ease.

Lie down and rest for a while: If conditions permit, when a migraine attacks, you might as well rest for a while in a dimly lit and quiet room. Generally speaking, as long as you sleep for half an hour, the migraine will be relieved.

Massage your head: Massaging your head with moderate force is an effective way to relieve migraines. The temple is an important acupoint for migraine massage. You can press it with your index finger, or you can use your fist to gently rotate back and forth from the temple to the hairline to massage.

Drinking green tea: The substances in green tea are effective in relieving migraines, so you can drink green tea in moderation to overcome severe migraines.

Meditation: Using yoga and meditation is a new way to treat migraines. You can buy a CD of this kind, and when you have a headache, close your eyes and meditate for a while to the music, letting the harmonious sounds of nature make you forget the pain.

Wrap a towel around your head: It may look ridiculous, but it is a good way to treat migraines. When you feel pain, use a towel or soft cloth strip to wrap around your temples with appropriate tightness. This can inhibit blood vessel dilation and relieve pain.

There are many factors that induce migraine, so patients must not take medication at will. They must go to the hospital for diagnosis and take medication under the guidance of a doctor to achieve a good effect.

Here I would like to remind you that when you have a headache, you should never take medicine on your own. You must find the cause of the headache and treat it accordingly. If the headache problem is not relieved, it is best to see a professional doctor.