Posted by Kayla Grossmann on Thu, Dec 05, 2013
Migraines. There is really no way to describe them, no creative string of words nor playful metaphor that adequately portrays what it is like to have a migraine headache- except for maybe the adjective m-i-s-e-r-a-b-l-e. If you have ever struggled with a migraine before, or even watched a family member suffer through one, you likely understand how beastly and destructive they can be. As a migraine sufferer who has missed days of work and family gatherings with my face buried in a pillow in a dark room, this scenario is all too familiar. Yet recent studies have shown promise that a very simple treatment may provide a route of much needed relief for migraine sufferers: magnesium.
Migraine Madness
Before we get down to the juicy stuff, it is important to point out that there are a lot of misconceptions floating around out there regarding migraines. Contrary to popular belief, migraines are not simply bad headaches. Migraines involve a throbbing, pounding or pulsating pain that lasts anywhere from 4 to 72 hours, is reoccurring and often accompanied by any of a wide range of symptoms including numbness, tingling, visual disturbances, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and fatigue. Although not diagnostic in nature, one study found following three questions to be very helpful in determining the presence of migraines:
Has a headache limited your activities for one or more days in the last three months?
Are you nauseated when you have a headache?
Does light bother you when you have a headache? 4
It is estimated that more than 37 million Americans struggle with migraines. They affect more than one in four women and is a leading cause of workplace absenteeism nationwide. Yet, according to the American Headache Society, fewer than one half are believed to receive proper treatment. 1, 2
This staggering discrepancy is caused in part by an inadequacy of accessible migraine resources, but also because migraines are far too often mistaken as simple sinus or tension headaches that will somehow just go away in time.
For others with a migraine diagnosis, it seems absolutely impossible to decipher a realistic cause. One quick click on the web churns up thousands of obscure listings of items that possess the ominous potential to set off the migraine cascade and seize the head in throbbing pain. From red wine gulping to bubble bath taking, high stress levels to eating bananas, some articles would make you believe that nearly anything can cause a booming migraine headache. Many people have given up trying to figure it out at all.
To complicate the matter, migraineurs actively seeking medical consult are often seen for a rushed appointment and left with only hastily scribbled prescriptions and a frightening list of potential side effects to look out for. Such harsh perspectives and misdiagnoses betray those struggling with these debilitating chronic headaches, silencing suffers with inadequate quick-fix solutions such as whipping back a handful of pain medication or nestling under the sheets for a fitful nap.
For many individuals struggling with migraine headaches, there is nowhere to turn.
The Migraine Mechanism
Although at times unpredictable, the blinding pain of a migraine is not random. It is crucial to understand that these chronic headaches are in fact the result of a complex cascade of inflammatory physiological reactions in the nervous system. Although still not entirely understood, recent investigations with imaging techniques and other sophisticated scientific tools have provided a more detailed insight to the pathogenesis of migraines.
In the current literature, the prevailing theory stands that migraines are the result of a hazardous misfiring of nerve impulses in different parts of the brain. During a migraine the brain stem that forms the juncture between the spinal cord and brain, is somehow mistakenly triggered to send a series of impulses to the nerve endings in the connective tissue surrounding the brain, an area referred to as the meninges. These confused signals result in the release of several different chemicals (such as substance P, neurokinin A and calcitonin gene-related peptide among others) which spill into the meningeal tissue, dilating the local blood vessels and creating a ruinous inflammatory reaction. 5
Consequently, the meningeal nerves send panicked messages back to brain stem, where they are registered as overwhelming pain. Therefore, although it might feel like in a migraine the brain actually hurts, it is rather the inflammatory reaction in the tissues surrounding the brain that is so problematic.
Thus, like so many other chronic conditions plaguing individuals today, migraines are at the root a disease of inflammation!
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