Women Have a Greater Risk for Developing this Type of Headache

Women Have a Greater Risk for Developing this Type of Headache

Migraines, the second most common headache type, can be dreadfully painful and endure for hours or even days. Women are more susceptible to them than men.

Migraine episodes are thought to be caused by a drop in brain serotonin levels. This drop causes certain nerves to send messages to the brain's outer blood vessels. The messages cause the vessels to constrict (shrink) and dilate (swell.) Migraine head pain results. Women's seretonin levels fluctuate with the fluctuation of estrogen levels during the monthly menstrual cycle. It is very common for women to develop migraines just before and just after the onset of the monthly period.

Because the constriction and dilation of blood vessels is the main cause of dysfunction and pain, migraine headaches are considered vascular in type (cluster headaches are also vascular, but common tension headaches are muscular in origin.)

Symptoms of Migraines
Symptoms during a migraine headache episode can include throbbing or pulsating pain on one or both sides of the head, nausea, vomiting, light and/or noise sensitivity, and weakness or fatigue.
A majority of people experience migraine headaches without any warning signs (two-thirds), but those who have warnings, or auras, can experience any of the following symptoms fifteen to thirty minute before headaches start, with abnormalities subsiding after headache onset