Monday 22 October 2018

9 Natural Remedies for Headaches for Quick Relief

Lavender is a natural way to get rid of a headache.Lavender is a natural headache remedy.

Did you know that headaches are the most common form of pain?[1] Relatively minor and temporary conditions — such as dehydration, stress, the flu, a cold, an ear or tooth infection, or staring at a computer screen for too long — cause most headaches. Others may be caused by underlying medical issues, whether a blow to the head or — rarely — something more serious.

Fortunately, you can ease most headache pain naturally. While over-the-counter medications may alleviate the pain of both chronic and occasional headaches, natural remedies provide relief without the side effects of pharmaceuticals.

The Different Types of Headaches

No two headaches are alike. Head pain can come on suddenly or develop gradually; go away within an hour or last for several days; feel sharp, dull, or throbbing. If you have a migraine, you may see flashes of light, become hypersensitive to noise, or feel nauseous.

Doctors have described two main types of headaches: primary and secondary. Primary headaches result from physical issues. Some examples include altered blood flow to the brain, neck, and head, hormone or nerve activity in your brain, tension in head and neck muscles, or some combination of these factors.

Primary headaches include:

  • Migraines (with or without aura)
  • Cluster headaches
  • Tension headaches

Secondary headaches, on the other hand, are caused by a disease or condition that pushes, pulls, or presses on pain-sensitive nerve endings in the brain. These conditions may cause secondary headaches:

Knowing the causes of your head pain will help you decide which remedy will work best.

Natural Remedies for Headaches

Over-the-counter pain medications such as aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen tend to be the standard recommendation for alleviating your pounding headaches. But, many natural remedies can eliminate headaches, reduce their intensity, or reduce how often you get them. Consider the following strategies and see what works best for you.

1. Drink More Water

If you suspect that dehydration may be causing your headache, drink up! Consuming about two to three cups of water may help, but it may take 30 minutes to three hours. Research hasn't found that drinking more water can prevent headaches, however. Generally, though, it's important for your overall health to stay hydrated and drink plenty of water throughout the day.[2]

2. Use Essential Oils

Essential oils provide many therapeutic benefits, and both lavender and peppermint essential oils can help relieve headaches. Studies have found peppermint oil to be as effective as acetaminophen (paracetamol) and aspirin for tension headaches.[3]

Apply a couple of drops of undiluted peppermint oil to your temples, making sure to avoid your eye area. If your skin is sensitive, you can dilute it in a carrier like almond or coconut oil. Using lavender essential oil for aromatherapy helps relieve stress and headaches, simply rub some between your hands and inhale. Some evidence suggests that lavender is an effective and safe way to reduce the severity of migraine headaches.[4]

3. Sleep More

If you have a headache, take a nap. But if you get them regularly, you might want to think about how much sleep you get each night: migraine, tension, and cluster headaches are associated with sleep deprivation and other sleep disorders like insomnia. Conversely, while you need to get seven to nine hours of sleep every night, sleeping too much can actually increase headache occurrence.[5] If you struggle with insomnia, natural solutions to better sleep, such as keeping electronics out of your bedroom and setting your bedroom thermostat between 60 and 67 degrees, can help.

4. Apply Heat or Cold

Placing a cold compress on your neck may reduce the pain of a migraine, while heat may be better for tension headaches. However, either may reduce pain and help relieve your headaches, so try both and see which works best for you.

5. Turn Off the Lights

Photophobia, or sensitivity to light, co-occurs with migraines so frequently that doctors consider it diagnostic of them.[6] Blue light, which emanates from cell phones and computer screens, can cause stress headaches as well, so turn off your devices and step away for a while. A solution for photophobia-induced headaches is to go into a dark or dimly lit room for 20 to 30 minutes.[7] While sitting quietly in the dark, it's a great time to quiet your mind and meditate.

6. Meditate & Practice Yoga

Meditation offers a simple way to relax, still your mind, and breathe deeply — all of which reduce headache pain. Whether you are a beginner or you meditate regularly, this quiet practice can calm your nerves, steady the blood flow to the brain, and eliminate tension. Mindfulness meditation reduces the intensity of primary headaches,[8] and yoga can reduce the frequency that people get migraine headaches.[9] Consider learning about the best meditation practices and try different yoga classes to see what style you prefer.

7. Try Acupuncture

Studies found that getting at least six acupuncture treatments reduces the frequency of migraine headaches as effectively as pain medication. A review of multiple studies found that 41 percent of people getting acupuncture had half as many migraine headaches in the months following treatment.[10] Acupuncture also proved more effective than sham acupuncture, a "control" technique used to test for the placebo effect.

8. Use Pressure Points

In acupressure, practitioners push on specific body pressure points for different conditions. You can even perform acupressure on headache pressure points on your own. Try using your right thumb and index finger to press on the loose skin between these same fingers on your left hand. This pressure point is called LI-4 or Hegu.

9. Get a Massage

Since many headaches come from tension in the upper back, neck, jaw, and shoulders, a massage can do wonders. Massage has many therapeutic benefits with few risks. It improves blood circulation while reducing blood pressure, soothing pain, reducing stress and anxiety, and just making you feel good. Add in some lavender or rosemary massage oil for the added bonus of aromatherapy with your massage.

Foods That Help with Headaches

Although some foods are known to cause headaches, others may help prevent or ease a headache. Try the following foods, which are rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other nutrients, next time you have a headache.

Kale & Leafy Greens

Leafy greens such as kale, spinach, chard, and collard greens are foods high in folate. Low intakes of this B vitamin may increase the risk of headaches. Kale is a superfood, one of the most nutrient-rich foods that exist. Kale has healthy omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, and magnesium, all of which help you sleep soundly.

Almonds

People who suffer from migraines may have lower levels of magnesium in their blood serum compared to people who don't get them.[11] Magnesium affects the release of neurotransmitters in the body, and the constriction of blood vessels (vasoconstriction), which can affect headaches.[12] Almonds have naturally high levels of magnesium — one ounce of almonds provides 80 milligrams.[12]

Coffee & Tea

Did you realize that you can find headache relief from a cup of Joe? Caffeine is commonly used in over-the-counter pain relievers, but you can get this same effect from coffee. Between 100 and 130 milligrams of caffeine — the amount in about 8 ounces of coffee — may help ease both a migraine and tension headaches.[13]

You can get the same amount of caffeine from black or green tea. Drinking a hot mug of a relaxing tea, like chamomile or ginger, may also help calm your nerves and reduce head pain.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Organic apple cider vinegar (ACV) is an amazing creation. Not only does it contain a probiotic "mother" that revs up your immune system, ACV gives your digestive system a boost which can help with headaches. ACV also helps normalize blood sugar, which can help because blood sugar spikes may cause head pain.

Supplements for Headaches

The body processes the nutrients in food in a better manner than from supplements. But sometimes, you may lack certain vitamins and minerals because of your diet, and in those cases, you can take nutritional supplements to fill the gaps. These supplements may help with your headaches.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Omega-3 fatty acids can reduce the frequency and severity of headaches, as well as promote an overall balanced mood.[14] While fatty fish like salmon, herring, sardines, and tuna are good sources of omega 3s, I recommend avoiding fish sources, instead try looking to flax seed, algae oil, and other plant-based sources of omega-3s.

Vitamin B-12

Some studies have found elevated levels of homocysteine, an amino acid produced by the body, in people who migraines.[15] Some studies have found that supplementing with vitamin B-12 may normalize homocysteine levels in the body, and as a result, may help with headaches, though the studies are inconclusive.[16] Foods high in vitamin B-12 include primarily animal sources, so if you eat a plant-based diet, you may need to take a B-12 supplement.

Magnesium

As mentioned earlier, insufficient magnesium causes blood vessels to constrict, and when that happens in the brain, it can lead to head pain. Studies have found that taking a magnesium supplement can influence blood flow, easing headache tension.[17] A large proportion of people do not get enough magnesium in their diet, so adding the supplement to your daily regime may help.

Riboflavin

Also called vitamin B2, riboflavin in high doses may reduce headache frequency. Scientists had people take 400 milligrams every day for 6 months and observed that cut the number of headaches people experienced from four to two per month.[18] Taking this vitamin also reduced the amount of migraine medication the patients needed to take.

Coenzyme Q-10

Our bodies naturally produce an antioxidant known as CoQ10 or Coenzyme Q, but taking more can serve as a natural remedy for headache.[19] In the body, CoQ10 provides energy to cells, but some people with various health ailments may be deficient in this substance.[20] It may help with headaches by reducing blood pressure in the body.

Feverfew

This herbal supplement may help prevent migraines, but the evidence is inconclusive. The most recent rigorous trial found that taking feverfew caused, on average, 0.6 fewer migraines a month. The study found no major safety concerns with taking feverfew supplements.[21]

Butterbur

Butterbur, a flower in the sunflower family, may help prevent headaches according to the American Academy of Neurology and the American Headache Society.[22] However, unprocessed butterbur plant contains toxic chemicals called pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs), so only use supplements labeled and certified as PA-free.

What Causes Headaches?

Now that you know natural ways to eliminate headaches, you may also want to know what causes them, so you can avoid them where possible, especially triggers in your environment. Common causes of headaches include:

  • Skipped meals
  • Stress
  • Inadequate or uncomfortable sleep
  • Neck muscle pain
  • Bright lights
  • Cigarette smoke or alcohol
  • Strong odors, like perfume
  • Certain foods
  • A medical condition

Foods That Cause Headaches

Some people experience headaches after eating certain foods. Common food triggers include:

If you suspect something in your diet may be causing your headaches, keep a food journal. Writing down what you eat and when you eat it can help you identify food triggers, so you can eliminate them from your diet.

Irregular eating schedules can also lead to headaches, whether you miss a meal because you are too busy to eat or because you are fasting. When you are fasting or cleansing, headaches typically go away once caffeine and other toxins are fully eliminated from your bloodstream and your body adjusts.

Genes & Headaches

It's not uncommon for migraines to run in families and some research suggests that migraines are genetic. The authors of a 2013 study of more than 100,000 people published in the journal Nature Genetics identified 12 genetic regions, including five new ones, associated with people's susceptibility to migraines.[23]

Stress & Headaches

Headaches are more likely to occur when you feel stressed. Stress can cause both tension headaches and migraines, and can worsen headaches caused by other issues. Find ways to reduce and handle stress — such as taking breaks throughout the day, exercising, and meditating.

Sleep & Headaches

Too little and too much sleep, as well as sudden changes in your sleeping pattern, may trigger tension headaches and migraines. Both less than six hours and more than eight and a half hours of sleep appear to increase the severity of headaches. Those who suffer from headaches are two to eight times more likely than the average person to have a sleep disorder,[5] so talk to your healthcare provider if you are concerned.

Exercise & Headaches

Common activities associated with exercise headaches include lifting weights and cardiovascular exercise such as running, swimming, rowing, and playing tennis. Avoid exercising outdoors in hot, humid weather or at high altitudes, as both can increase the likelihood of an exercise headache.

Sex & Headaches

For some people, having sex can trigger a headache. Sex headaches may be a dull ache or severe pain, and typically happens immediately before or during orgasm. They occur more frequently in men than women. On the other hand, studies show that sex can actually relieve headaches in some people, at least temporarily, as blood flows away from the head region during orgasm.[24] Sex headaches should not cause alarm unless they linger long afterwards.

Points to Remember

Some simple healthy practices can help alleviate and prevent headaches, whether migraines, tension headaches, or other types of headaches. If you have a headache, natural remedies include drinking water, going into a dark room, and using stress-reduction techniques such as yoga, meditation, and aromatherapy using essential oils. The caffeine within a cup of coffee may also help.

One of the best natural remedies for tension headaches involves relaxing your body and mind, which calms your muscles, reduces your body tension, lowers your blood pressure, and calm your nerves. Get enough sleep — but not too much — and eat foods that help headaches, like kale and almonds. Some supplements reduce the frequency you get headaches, including magnesium, B-12, feverfew, and butterbur.

It can also be beneficial to avoid triggers. Everyone has different triggers, though, so consider keeping a journal to help you identify yours.

The post 9 Natural Remedies for Headaches for Quick Relief appeared first on Dr. Group's Healthy Living Articles.



source https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/natural-remedies-for-headaches/
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