New theory about migraine triggers published

ConclusionThe study brings together evidence in support of a plausible theory about the causes of migraine. However, the evidence is very mixed in quality. Although the author says all triggers have the potential to cause oxidative stress, the link for some triggers is quite weak. For example, he says in the study it is unclear whether excessive mental work can cause oxidation, and that the role of oestrogen is not clear. Because of the difficulty of showing the effects of oxidative stress on the brain, most of the evidence is from animal studies on mice or rats, or studies of what happens to cells in test tubes or petri dishes, rather than in the human body. Triggers for migraine have been mainly identified by people who experience them. This is not always a reliable way of identifying a cause of migraine, because it’s easy to muddle a trigger with an early symptom. For example, if you always get a migraine after eating chocolate, you might actually have a craving for sugar as an early migraine symptom, but you would probably identify the chocolate itself as a trigger. Also, the triggers studied here have many effects, in addition to any effect on oxidative stress. The author has not ruled out the possibility that other effects are the true cause of the migraine. It’s an even bigger leap to say that certain antioxidants, such as vitamins, could prevent migraines. We need further research to find out whether antioxidants could be beneficial for people with migraines.In co...
Source: NHS News Feed - Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Neurology Source Type: news