In cross-sectional studies, six out of the 11 had a high risk of bias 46–48, 51, 56, 60, because they received fewer than 6 positive answers. Three studies were evaluated as moderate risk, with 6 “yes” answers 44, 57, 59. Two of the remaining cross-sectional papers achieved seven or eight points and therefore were low bias-risk 26, 27. Table 4 summarizes the assessment of the cross-sectional risk of bias.
As a person, he is one half of one of two sets of twins in his family. The study and editorial appeared in the November/December 2022 issue of Headache. No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician. As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content. In order to operate the site and better serve you, we collect your data.
General Health
- Vasodilation may trigger migraine attacks in certain individuals.
- For example, wine may be a trigger for some but whiskey may not have an influence.
- So it’s best to make alcohol the single, isolated factor and journal what triggers each migraine.
- The datasets generated and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
Statistically, males drink more alcohol than women and have more alcohol-related behavioral disorders 23. Drinking problems occur in every age, but in the 25–49 age group, alcohol has the highest impact on mortality caused by cancer deaths and also life disability 24, 25. Does alcohol seem to affect your migraine attacks and symptoms? Do you think you might react to certain alcoholic beverages more than others? Share your thoughts in the comments below, or start a discussion on MyMigraineTeam. Whether or not alcohol is a common migraine headache trigger is debatable.
Hormonal Migraine Relief: How to Manage Symptoms and Triggers
Here are some small changes you can make to your daily life to reduce the frequency of migraine days. Taking 300 milligrams of CoQ10 each day may reduce the number and severity of migraine headaches each month. Some research also suggests that sleep helps get rid of headache pain during a migraine attack. Taking a nap when symptoms begin may help speed up your recovery.
Tannins give wine its astringent taste, and they can also contribute to headaches. Tannins can be found in other drinks including, tea, coffee and chocolate. The astringency from the tannins is what causes the dry feeling in the mouth when you drink these beverages or eat food high in tannins like unripe fruit. There are many possible triggers for migraine attacks, including stress, bright lights, loud noises, weather changes, certain foods and drinks, and changes in sleep or hormone patterns to name a few. Chemicals called congeners are also a component of alcoholic drinks.
While alcohol is a trigger for some migraine sufferers, others find that they can still drink occasionally without experiencing symptoms. First, let’s consider the ingredients and byproducts of alcohol. Alcohol contains various compounds linked to the onset of migraine.
Information on the gender of participants was unavailable for analysis. So, the question of who is drinking more with a primary headache is still to be addressed. Additionally, only a few of the studies divided participants into migraine with and without aura. Therefore, there was insufficient data to analyze the relationship between alcohol and aura, and the data that does exist is inconsistent 65, 86. As mentioned in the discussion above, alcohol consumption assessment is strongly based on patients’ honesty. If there is misleading data in questionnaires or during medical interviews, their overall subsequent analysis is also distorted.
- As a result, eating beforehand reduces alcohol’s potential migraine-inducing effects.
- Your trusted professionals are your best resource for getting medical advice when it comes to limiting the negative effects alcohol has on you, your life, and your migraine.
- However, findings on the association between alcohol intake and migraine are inconclusive for a number of reasons, including cultural, regional, and individual differences in the consumption of alcohol.
The American Academy of Neurology once promoted it as an effective herbal supplement for reducing the severity and frequency of migraines. However, it is no longer recommended due to serious safety concerns. Devineé Lingo is a registered dietitian nutritionist who is on a mission to cultivate health and wholeness in people seeking restoration and renewal.
It’s important to note that alcohol use disorder is a serious illness that can have life-threatening consequences. It’s important to see your healthcare provider if you are concerned about your alcohol use. This will be helpful in guiding conversations with your doctor about your symptoms. We recommend taking a look at our patient guides, which include useful information like how to talk to your doctor about migraine.
However, researchers aren’t clear on exactly how or why alcohol can impact migraine. There is even some debate about whether alcohol itself or another chemical component in alcoholic drinks acts as the trigger. This uncertainty makes it difficult for many people who want to responsibly enjoy alcohol during the holidays or on special occasions to effectively manage their migraine symptoms. “The relationship between caffeine and migraine is complicated and differs from individual to individual.
Alcohol as a Migraine Trigger
These chemicals may also trigger migraine headaches in certain people. Alcohol may trigger migraine attacks, and it’s very unlikely to ease them. Alcohol-induced migraine is different than a hangover, which is caused by overconsuming alcohol. The migraines tend to start within three hours of consuming alcohol.
Congeners can also include chemicals like histamine, which can trigger migraine attacks and headaches. Assessment of alcohol consumption is challenging, because the results are dependent on the patient’s honesty. Patients sometimes have a tendency not to admit their drinking habits 90. It has been proved that self-reported alcohol consumption by patients can be underestimated; therefore, more reliable methods such as toxicological hair analysis may help to provide stronger evidence 91. Of the studies included in our analysis, 19 were based only on questionnaires while five included interviews with patients.
Another type of attack is called the delayed alcohol induced headache and will usually appear the next day. This is the hangover effect that appears in the morning following alcohol consumption when the alcohol in the blood has reached zero. People with migraine are more likely to have this type of reaction to migraine than those without. While migraines and alcohol both congeners and tannins play a role in migraine attacks, ethanol (a natural byproduct of plant fermentation) is still the biggest trigger when it comes to migraine attacks appearing after alcohol consumption. Usually, the effects of an alcohol-triggered migraine attack will happen within 30 minutes to 3 hours. The few experimental studies indicate that the highest congener beverage (bourbon) results in more severe hangover ratings than does the beverage with essentially no congeners (vodka).
Migraine and increased cardiovascular disease risk: interaction with traditional risk factors and lifestyle factors
Some people may experience an alcohol-related migraine between 30 minutes and 3 hours after drinking. 2020 research shows that females are more likely to experience hangovers, memory problems, and liver disease from consuming alcohol. Since the research on alcohol as a migraine trigger is limited, and everyone’s body metabolizes foods and drinks differently, it can be helpful to tune into what yours is telling you. “Someone may feel a slight relief from a migraine attack after drinking due to the sedative effects alcohol has, but this is only for a short amount of time and will not last,” said neuropsychologist Sanam Hafeez, PhD. Primary care physician Monica Kalra, DO, explained that alcohol can cause histamine release, and histamine can cause the widening of blood cells in the brain, which may trigger a migraine attack.
The interpretation of this data should be cautious, since recall bias is a major concern. It is also possible that retrospective recall biases cause higher correlation between HSS scores across time periods. Alcohol hangover is a poorly understood cluster of symptoms occurring following a heavy consumption of alcohol. The term “delayed alcohol-induced headache” is often used synonymously. Our objective was to compare alcohol hangover symptoms in migraine sufferers and nonsufferers. Fueling your body with a meal before consuming alcohol can make a difference.
Reducing or eliminating alcohol may reduce the frequency of migraine attacks. It may also help eliminate triggers that tend to co-occur with drinking, such as dehydration and sleep deprivation. Although any type of alcohol can trigger a migraine, people who experience regular migraine attacks cite red wine as the most frequent culprit.
Caffeine and alcohol may be mildly dehydrating and can also slightly increase blood pressure. “It may also cause side effects like photosensitivity, hallucinations and agitation, all of which are already common among people with migraines,” she emphasizes. For these reasons, she says it’s best to avoid using St. John’s wort if you experience migraines regularly. Pre-workout supplements are popular for enhancing exercise performance and recovery, but they can also trigger migraines. While alcohol hangover is a common disorder,10 causing suffering and disability to millions worldwide, there is no direct way to measure it. The HSS, which was used in this study, was developed to provide a useful hangover measure, assessing multiple symptom domains, which do not rely on respondents’ subjective definitions of hangover.