Migraine triggers do not shun

Migraine triggers should not be avoided.

At the currently held Pain Congress 2010 amazing findings were submitted by the experts: so-called migraine triggers such as chocolate or champagne should not be avoided. On the contrary, it is better to take a sip of champagne from time to time, because this could make the organism accustomed to supposed migraine triggers. Also, stress and anger are not triggers for migraine. Rather, they are a result of pre-symptoms.

A migraine announces itself with pre-symptoms
According to new estimates, around 10 percent of Germans suffer from recurrent migraine. Women are affected about three times as often as men. A migraine manifests itself with headache, photosensitivity but also with symptoms such as nausea and vomiting. Some sufferers also develop a sensitivity to noise during a seizure. Often a pain attack announces signals by so-called harbingers. Such symptoms start a few hours before a seizure. A harbinger is, for example, the cravings attack.

Around 70 percent of migraine patients know such cravings. Affected then eat tons of sweets such. Chocolate. Since a migraine occurs after cravings, many patients assume that chocolate consumption provoked the attack. But that is a mistake, as the Rostock headache expert Peter Kropp explained at the beginning of the German Pain Congress 2010. One study found out that chocolate is not a migraine trigger at all. Only the craving for chocolate indicates an imminent migraine. The brain knows very well that it needs a lot of energy for the approaching attack. For this reason, the craving for sweets in advance is correspondingly large.

In recent years, patients have been virtually always vaccinated, they should avoid so-called migraine triggers such as sparkling wine, wine or stress. But such an avoidance tactic inevitably leads to the amplification of symptoms. Better to de-sensitize the body, so the advice of the experts. Here, too, studies have shown that such an avoidance attitude only intensifies migraine symptoms. The person concerned advises Professor Peter Kropp, rather from time to time to drink a glass of wine. By the way, this also works with a diluted wine spritzer.

Stress and strife no trigger for a migraine
Stress, strife and worry were also mistakenly seen as migraine triggers. But here too many physicians and patients are subject to a misconception. Harbingers of a migraine are u.a. Greizeability, fatigue, nervousness and difficulty concentrating. This inevitably leads to stressful situations. So far, it was assumed that stress and strife would favor a migraine. Rather, they are results of the harbingers.

No really effective anti-migraine remedies have been found yet. Although there are many medicines for the pain, but no method has been developed to prevent migraine attacks in advance completely. On the contrary, studies have shown that the frequent use of painkillers actually increases migraine symptoms. „If these drugs are taken more and more frequently and in ever higher doses, they can cause headaches and of course have side effects, such as on the stomach and intestines“, so Dr. Stefanie Förderreuther, neurologist of the German Migraine and Headache Society.

Relaxation, Acupuncture, Biofeedback: Alternative treatments for migraine
Relaxation techniques, cleansing of the intestinal flora (intestinal dysbiosis), biofeedback, neural therapy, yoga, autogenic training, light endurance sports, osteopathy and acupuncture are recommended. Scientists now call acupuncture a migraine prophylaxis as a useful procedure. According to the study findings, this is at least as effective as a conventional medical prophylaxis. The advantage: There are no side effects. Such procedures can help to reduce the susceptibility to acute pain. On the other hand, areas in the brain, which are responsible for a damping of the pain, could also be activated. In a behavioral therapy, sufferers can also learn to deal better with the symptoms and the associated stress. (sb, 07.10.2010)

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