Do you blame headaches on the weather? Maybe you're right!

William Atkins
Tuesday, 10 March 2009 18:38

Science - Health

These Boston, Mass researchers concluded that, “Higher ambient temperature and, to a lesser degree, lower barometric pressure led to a transient increase in risk of headache requiring emergency department evaluation.” [Abstract]

Dr. Kenneth J. Mukamal, one of the authors of the study, states that their study does not definitely prove that weather conditions cause migraines. However, the study does point the finger at what people have been claiming for years—that changing weather causes headaches.

Dr. Mukamal states that these results are not “a reason to stay indoors or move to a different part of the country.” [U.S. World and News Report: “Warmer-Than-Average Temperatures Raise Migraine Risk”]

He adds, "But this does tell us that when we identify migraine triggers, we need to keep temperature in mind. Before, we might say it must be that ice cream that gave you a headache. Now, maybe it's the temperature that made you want to eat the ice cream." [U.S. News and World Report]

They also stated in the conclusion to their paper that, “We did not find clear association of air pollutants with risk, but cannot exclude effects of air pollution of the magnitude previously observed for stroke and other cardiovascular events.”

Although the study was the largest of its kind to study the impact of weather and air pollution on the risk of having severe headaches, the authors admit that larger studies are necessary to better understand the impacts of air pollution on headaches.

Dr. Kenneth J. Mukamal, one of the authors of the study, stated, “We are not saying that air pollution is not a headache trigger. What we can say with some confidence is that the effect is not enormous.” [WebMD]

For additional information on headaches, checkout the International Headache Society (IHS), the National Headache Foundation (NHF), and the American Headache Society (AHS).