It is clear that quantity can play a role in triggering headaches, and quality probably plays a role, but we do not know for sure how any type of wine or alcohol will affect people with migraine or who are prone to headaches. Like food triggers, the likelihood of alcohol and headaches a particular type of alcohol triggering a headache is probably different from person to person. If you suffer from migraines, talk with your doctor about how alcohol may affect you. Or you might be fine until after your blood alcohol level returns to normal.
- And if you have one too many alcoholic drinks, you may start to slur your speech and have trouble walking in a straight line — and that’s all before dealing with a hangover the next day.
- Combined with alcohol, NSAIDs can increase your risk of stomach bleeding.
- Yoga, nutritional supplements, essential oils, and dietary modifications are all natural, safe, and effective ways to reduce headache symptoms.
- A study of 400 people who experienced either migraine or tension headaches found that strong odors, especially perfumes, often triggered headaches (51).
Causes of hangover headache
Acetaminophen makes it harder for your body to process alcohol and can damage your liver. Vitamin B6 is an essential nutrient that’s found in all sorts of common foods, such as poultry, potatoes, and fruit. Alcohol reduces your levels of B vitamins, making it harder for your body to metabolize and eliminate alcohol. Repeated drinking can lead to liver scarring, known as cirrhosis. Certain inflammatory chemicals increase in the blood and affect various natural hormonal pathways. The stomach lining may become irritated, increasing nausea and the chance of bleeding.
Alcohol as a Migraine Trigger
- Children who have migraines usually have at least one biological parent who also experiences them.
- Those diagnosed with a specific type of headache may be more prone to develop a specific type of headache after consuming alcohol.
- By lowering your stress level, you can avoid stress-induced headaches.
- It’s the party drink that should never be missing because a lot of guests will expect to have a cup or two or more.
At the time of the study, the app was only available to users of iOS. With 30 years of paying close attention to consumption and the boundaries, I have evolved to limiting high alcohol, highly tannic, and heavily processed wines. With the huge focus on organic foods and what we all eat, there should be as much attention put on what we drink.
Medical Professionals
If you start feeling unwell after drinking just a small amount of booze, you might want to get to the bottom of what’s going on. The only way to truly know is to see an allergist, Maskatia said. For example, surgery is often needed to correct the underlying cause of secondary cough headache. Stress management teaches you ways to cope with stressful situations.
- If drinking alcohol appears to be a potent headache trigger for you, then, by all means, abstain from it.
- An intolerance, meanwhile, is any other type of reaction to alcohol that doesn’t involve the immune system, Factor explained.
- When there was alcohol intake on day‐2 (regardless of intake on day‐1, Figure 1C,D) the probability of migraine attack was lower compared to when there was no alcohol intake in both day‐1 and day‐2 (red dots).
- Alcohol reduces your levels of B vitamins, making it harder for your body to metabolize and eliminate alcohol.
- Still, we’ve also got some tips that can help you reduce your chances of having a headache, and a few to ease your pain in case you’ve already got one.
Assessment of risk bias
For example, one study in 80 people diagnosed with migraine demonstrated that taking 100 mg of CoQ10 per day reduced migraine frequency, severity, and length (39). Studies suggest that cold therapy may benefit those experiencing certain types of headaches, including headaches caused by nitrate medication used to treat heart conditions like chest pain (37). Applying cold or frozen compresses to your neck or head area decreases inflammation, slows nerve conduction, and constricts blood vessels, all of which could help reduce headache pain (36). Evidence suggests that magnesium deficiency is more common in people who get frequent migraine headaches than in those who don’t (13). For example, headaches can result from potentially life threatening conditions, including tumors and blood clots, as well as from traumatic brain injury (5). In your bloodstream, ethanol can cause headaches through vasodilation.
B-complex supplements contain all eight of the B vitamins and are a safe, cost-effective way to naturally treat headache symptoms. It’s also found in certain foods, such as aged cheeses, fermented foods, beer, wine, smoked fish, and cured meats. Pure Encapsulations Magnesium Citrate is a great choice for people who want to try magnesium for headaches. Taking preventative measures is the best way to stop a hangover headache before it ever starts.
Living With Tension Headaches
