Help for migraineurs.

            Migraine headaches affect millions of persons but there has been a steady accumulation of evidence that nutritional factors, especially vitamins, can help to decrease their frequency and intensity. Considering that supplemental vitamins and minerals have minimal side effects if not taken in excess amounts and that all prescription medications have annoying, if not serious, side effects, promulgating this information is worth the effort.

            Certain B vitamins (B2, B6, B12 and folate – known as B9), reduce the formation of homocysteine, a well-studied trigger of migraine and a contributor to cardiovascular disease. Because the production of homocysteine has a genetic basis the results of prophylaxis with these vitamins have been spotty, and some persons may require high amounts of certain vitamins (Vitamin B2 for example) that are not usually recommended.

            Vitamin D is important for normal bone health and for a strong immune system but about half the U.S. population is deficient in this vitamin for at least part of the year. In an analysis of several studies, persons who took 50 micrograms (2,000 units) of vitamin D per day had fewer attacks and fewer “migraine days” per month than did control participants. Vitamin D supplements have no significant side effects, and you can ignore the pointless warnings in some lay publications that high doses of this vitamin can cause kidney disease. That is correct but “high” means more than 10,000 units per day for at least six months!

            Vitamin E is a kind of orphan vitamin, little studied compared to the others and deficiency of this vitamin is rare, or at least rarely recognized. However, it has been found to be an effective supplement for women who have menstrual migraine and menopausal migraine.

            Magnesium is another nutrient that is lacking in the diet of roughly half the population. It shouldn’t be. Leafy green vegetables, nuts and whole grains have an abundance of this mineral, but it is almost absent in the processed foods that have become so prevalent in the American diet. Along with the vitamins mentioned above, magnesium is a component of any quality multivitamin/multimineral supplement.

The bottom line.

            Migraine headaches will continue to vex millions of people and it’s not likely that there will be a breakthrough soon in this very complicated condition. However, sufferers should consider improving their diet to contain more leafy green vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fresh fruit, in addition to drastically lowering their intake of processed foods – that means just about everything at the grocery store that comes in a box or bag – and adding a quality multivitamin/multimineral to their daily diet. It ain’t rocket science!