Headaches: Factors, causes, prevention, and treatment

  

Headaches are the most frequent complaint in day-to-day life that can affect its quality. About more than 50% of the population suffer from headaches each year, and according to IASP (International Association for the Study of Pain) more than 90% repot headaches over a lifetime history, that’s definitely a huge number. 

But no need to worry, most of these headaches are normal and don’t necessarily mean you have cancer or you’re going to die like google search results told you so.

So, why do you have these headaches? And how can you avoid and treat them? You’ll find all your answers in this article.

Simple Physiological approach to headaches

In case you were wondering about the mechanism of headaches, here’s a simplified explanation. As you may know headache has many different types, but all these types have a common physiology and anatomy.

 Chemical activities, nerves, blood vessels, your head and neck muscles, or a combination of some of these factors can attribute in “primary headaches”.

 It starts with the Stimulation of the trigeminalcervical nucleus, a region of grey matter that receives afferents from the fifth cranial nerve “trigeminal nerve” and from the upper three cervical spinal nerves in addition to fibers from the seventh, ninth and tenth cranial nerves.

 So, any kind of stimulation in the areas innervated by these nerves (head and neck) can stimulate the trigeminalcervical nucleus and capable to cause headaches. Whereas, “secondary headaches” are symptoms for an underlying health condition or illness. so the mechanism depends on the possible cause of this condition.

Factors leading to headaches

1.  Physical factors, for example neck or back injury.
2.  Medical conditions, like high blood pressure or migraine.
3.  Emotional factors, such as excessive stress, anxiety disorder,        or depression.
4.  Environmental factors, like sleep deprivation, certain foods, skipping meals, alcohol misuse, or the weather.

Knowing these factors can help you take the right action to avoid unnecessary headaches without the need to swallow aspirin pills or any other pain killers every now and then.

Causes

Doctors classified the types of headaches according to whether there’s an underlying condition associated with the pain or not. So headache were categorized to primary or secondary as noted by International Headache Society. Each type has different possible causes.

Causes of primary headaches

As I mentioned earlier, the mechanism of this type depends on the overactivity of one factor or a combination of factors. Which are:

•   the trigeminalcervical nucleus
•   head blood vessels
•   neck and head muscles
•   cranial nerves
•   chemicals of the brain

Causes of secondary headaches

Some of the possible causes for this type can be:

•  hangovers
•  hypertension
•  febrile illnesses like influenza and typhoid fever
•  acute sinusitis
•  middle ear infection
•  panic attacks and anxiety disorder

Another cause of secondary headaches is pain medication overuse. Taking a lot of analgesics can backfire leading to more headaches instead of treating them.

Prevention

Earlier I talked about how overusing pain medication can lead to secondary headaches. So what can you do to prevent them from happening or ease the pain without any kind of medication? The answer is quite simple now that you understood the physiology of headaches and identified the possible factors. Here are some measures you can apply:

1.       Stay calm don’t stress over everything, as excessive stress can lead to headaches. Make sure to deal correctly with stressful situations and don’t hesitate to reach out for experts to help you. Yoga is another option to relax your nerves.
2.      Don’t skip meals especially breakfast, eating your meals regularly will regulate your glucose blood levels and so reduce the recent headaches you’ve been having after skipping breakfast.
3.     Drink enough water, I know you can’t count the times you’ve heard or read these words. But it is crucial to maintain your body hydrated enough, because it has been proven that even mild dehydration can lead to headaches according to National Headache Foundation.
4.        Keep your alcohol intake low, other than the countless risks of alcohol, it can also cause your headaches by triggering the release of CGRP ( calcitonin gene-related peptide) that bind to specific pain receptors and trigger “depolarization of glial cells” causing the sensation of a headache.
5.      Sleep enough hours, there isn’t a specific number of hours to get enough sleep it varies from one person to another. Keep track of how many hours you need and make sure to stick to your routine.
6.      Apply a warm or slightly cold pack on your head or neck, this can help you reduce the pain. But make sure to never use extreme temperatures.
7.    Consider walking as a regular exercise, it reduces stress especially after a long day of working.
8.     Meditate and stretch during work breaks.

Treatment

There are many options for treating a headache and the most important thing is to consult your doctor if you’re suspecting something serious. Here are some options:

• OTC pain relief medications like anti-inflammatory drugs (such as aspirin)
• Doctor’s prescribed pain medications
• Preventive medication for serious conditions, such as classic migraine.
• Other drugs prescribed for underlying illness.
• Stopping a certain medication to treat medication overuse headaches.

 

If you experience severe or reoccurring headaches you should consult your doctor to make sure you receive the professional care you might need.