Drinking water, cure for migraine

Written by Sade Oguntola.
Friday, 09 September 2011

Pain from migraine has been described as one of the worst anyone can suffer. Drinking water could be a simple cure for migraine. Researchers claim that increasing water intake by about six cups per day can reduce the intensity and duration of migraine attacks, reports Sade Oguntola.

Migraine headache is a painful and sometimes debilitating condition that strikes many people. The has been described as one of the worst pains anyone can suffer. Although researchers are not certain of what exactly happens to bring on an attack, it is believed that the headache itself is caused by the overfilling of blood vessels around the brain and their rebound reaction to this overfilling. The blood vessels in turn put pressure on sensitive nerve endings in the head, causing the throbbing and excruciating pain of migraine.

Many migraine patients report that certain foods are often related to the triggering of migraine attacks. Fortunately, identifying and avoiding these foods can help to significantly reduce the frequency of attacks. In addition, research has shown that migraine patients may be able to decrease the number of migraines they experience by increasing their water intake by about 6 cups per day.

Wondering if this is possible? According to a new finding published in the European Journal Of Neurology, drinking water could be a simple cure for migraines. The findings, published in the European Journal Of Neurology, suggested that people that experience migraine especially in hot weather should drink more water to prevent dehydration, which is a significant factor in the build-up to migraine attacks, this can reduce the intensity and duration of attack.

In the study, the researchers examined whether increasing water intake in migraine patients would help prevent future attacks. For the study, the 18 people that participated were divided into two groups. The first group received a placebo medication, while the second group was instructed to drink 1.5 additional Liters of water on top of their normal intake every day. After 12 weeks of the experimental treatment, each group had their migraine headache symptoms measured.

The results of this study found that the group who increased their water intake, reduced their total hours of headaches in a two-week period by 21 hours. This group also had a significant decrease in the intensity of their headache pain.

Simply put, dehydration occurs as the result of excessive loss of water from the body, when we lose more water than we take in. It’s a bit more complicated than that since the body loses valuable electrolytes as well. Dehydration can be a major issue, both in and of itself and as a headache or Migraine trigger due to the lowering of blood volume. Unfortunately, a reduction in blood volume causes less blood and oxygen to the brain.

Many people mistakenly think it occurs only in hot weather and that you’re not dehydrated if you’re not thirsty. Both of these misconceptions lead to many cases of dehydration every year, some of them quite serious. However, it takes an average of 64 to 80 ounces to replace the water our bodies lose in 24 hours. Under normal circumstances, how much water the body needs depends a great deal on the volume of perspiration and urine output. In addition, the bodies’ water needs increases under circumstances such as warmer weather or climate, increased physical activity, when experiencing vomiting, diarrhea or fever.

People suffering from migraines have learned that there can be many different types of triggers that lead to a migraine attack. Weather, lights, noise, stress, sleeping problems, alcohol, caffeine, and many others can affect migraine sufferers in different ways. And while the exact mechanism of what causes a migraine remains unclear, “almost 40 to 50 per cent of all triggers of migraine is due to stress, sleeping problems, diet, menstrual cycle and environmental changes such as light among others,” stated Dr Mayowa Owolabi, a consultant neurologist at the University College Hospital (UCH),Ibadan, Oyo State.

http://tribune.com.ng/index.php/your-health/27963-drinking-water-cure-for-migraine

I seem to drink less and less these days (because I've been cutting back on the tea!) I love bottled water, but it's so expensive.

I do try to drink quite a bit - I am not sure I would say its a cure - but it does help

Have you tried one of those water purifier jugs?

Yes, that's what I normally use, but I hate the taste of chlorine. Might just have to splash out (literally!) on the bottled.

I drink it by the pint..makes no difference to me . I find walking more useful. Managed 4 miles this week.

I know it's not much over 5 days but it's a start and it helped the stress levels a lot.

Jane
x

I once heard that you're supposed to ensure that you get enough salt if you drink lots of water. Something to do with the sodium balance in the body and probably the reason that you hear of people who drink absolutely gallons of water suddenly dying. Not that any of us would ever drink that much, I'm sure!!

Yes that's true but you'd have to drink LOADS and to the exclusion of a lot of other things.

I did know of one poor chap who had that illness,Psychogenic polydipsia, and he literally held his mouth over the tap and drank constantly.

He wanted to stop but the compulsion was really strong, it's sounds odd but it was awful poor guy.

wow poor guy.

I got an email re bottled water a bit back with details on why not to drink it - not sure how much of it is true - but I will try to find it and post for you to have a look at

Oh I know - it's not great really, is it? With all that plastic and all (and me trying to avoid xenoestrogens). I just wish the stuff out of the taps and water filter tasted nicer!

I heard once that we humans are generally dehydrated, because we drink more non-water drinks than water. I can understand that. I really get tired of drinking water. Anyway, if I go to the ER for a really bad migraine, I will usually ask them to run in some saline to help replenish the fluids I have lost from vomiting. The doctors usually agree that it is a good idea. It does help me feel better faster, too.