Supplements To Ease Headaches: Individuals dealing with headaches or migraines should consider incorporating supplements to ease headaches' severity and frequency. Nutrition and food habits affect all systems in the body. Although slower to take effect than medications, if a diet is used correctly to heal the body and maintain health, other treatments may not be necessary or require less. Many health providers understand that food is a medicine that can assist healing therapies like massage and chiropractic care, which makes the treatment more effective when used with dietary adjustments.
Supplements To Ease Headaches
An unhealthy lifestyle and diet are not the only contributing factor to headaches. Others include:
- Stress.
- Job occupation.
- Sleeping problems.
- Muscular tension.
- Vision problems.
- Certain medication usage.
- Dental conditions.
- Hormonal influences.
- Infections.
Healthy Diet Foundation
The goal of functional medicine is to help individuals reach their health and wellness goals that, include:
- Regularly active lifestyle.
- Optimal breathing patterns.
- Quality sleep patterns.
- Thorough hydration.
- Healthy nutrition.
- Improved digestive health.
- Improved mental health.
- Improved musculoskeletal health.
Pain Receptors - Headache
Pain and discomfort symptoms present when various head structures become inflamed or irritated. These structures include:
- Nerves of the head and neck.
- Muscles of the neck and head.
- The skin of the head.
- Arteries that lead to the brain.
- Membranes of the ear, nose, and throat.
- Sinuses that form part of the respiratory system.
The pain can also be referred, meaning that pain in one area can spread to nearby areas. An example is headache pain developed from neck stiffness and tightness.
Causes
Foods
Determining whether food sensitivities cause or contribute to headaches or migraines can be challenging. Nutritionists and dieticians recommend keeping a food journal to keep track of foods, snacks, drinks, alcohol intake, how the body reacts, and how the individual feels.
- This process can help recognize foods or eating patterns that may contribute to headaches.
- An integrative health practitioner can support this process and help identify sensitivities.
- By eliminating and avoiding processed foods, headaches may be alleviated. This includes limited exposure to artificial colors, sweeteners, flavors, and other unnatural additives.
Histamine
- Histamines can also be triggers for headaches.
- Histamine is a vasoactive amine that induces mucus production, blood vessel dilation, and bronchoconstriction.
- Histamine is in most body tissues, like the nose, sinuses, skin, blood cells, and lungs. But pollen, dander, dust mites, etc., can release histamine.
Dehydration
- Dehydration can affect all of the body and cognitive functions.
- Hydrating regularly can prevent headaches and relieve pain.
- An easy way to test the cause of headaches is to consider drinking plenty of water/hydrating before any other relief option.
- Drinking pure water with no additives is the quickest and easiest way to hydrate your body.
- Eat foods with high water content for enhanced hydration, including citrus fruits, cucumbers, melons, zucchini, celery, spinach, and kale.
Toxic Chemicals
- Toxic chemicals are found in all kinds of products.
- Cleaning products, make-up, shampoo, and other products have been found to contain chemicals that can worsen headaches and even cause migraines.
- Consider using natural products and educating on toxic chemicals to know what to look for in everyday products.
Natural Options
Consider a few natural supplements to ease headaches.
Magnesium
- Magnesium deficiency has been linked to headaches.
- Foods naturally high in magnesium include legumes, almonds, broccoli, spinach, avocados, dried figs, and bananas.
Ginger Root
- Ginger root is a natural remedy for nausea, diarrhea, upset stomach, and indigestion.
- Ginger root extract can be taken in supplement form or fresh ginger added to meals and teas.
Coriander Seeds
- Coriander syrup is effective against migraine pain.
- A method to relieve a headache is to pour hot water over fresh seeds and inhale the steam.
- To increase the effectiveness, place a towel over your head.
Celery or Celery Seed Oil
- Celery can reduce inflammation and lower blood pressure.
- However, pregnant women or individuals with kidney conditions, low blood pressure, taking thyroid medication, blood thinners, lithium, or diuretics should not use celery seed.
Peppermint and Lavender Essential Oils
- Both have a natural numbing and cooling effect that helps relieve headache pain.
- Peppermint oil has also been found to be a natural antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antiparasitic, and pain reliever.
- Lavender oil can eliminate nervous tension, enhance blood circulation, and relieve pain.
- Both are effective pain relief tools for headache and migraine sufferers.
Butterbur
- This shrub grows in Europe, some parts of Asia, and North America.
- A study found that individuals who consumed 75 mg of the extract twice daily reduced migraine attacks' frequency.
Feverfew
- A herb plant whose dried leaves have been found to relieve symptoms associated with headaches, migraines, menstrual cramps, asthma, dizziness, and arthritis.
- Feverfew can be found in supplements.
- It can alter the effects of certain prescription and non-prescription medications.
There is plenty of evidence to support the benefits of healthy nutrition. Combined with a healthy diet and lifestyle, these supplements can help relieve headaches. As with any supplement, talk to a doctor before starting a supplement regimen.
Chiropractic Care For Migraines
The information herein is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified healthcare professional or licensed physician and is not medical advice. We encourage you to make healthcare decisions based on your research and partnership with a qualified healthcare professional. Our information scope is limited to chiropractic, musculoskeletal, physical medicines, wellness, sensitive health issues, functional medicine articles, topics, and discussions. We provide and present clinical collaboration with specialists from various disciplines. Each specialist is governed by their professional scope of practice and their jurisdiction of licensure. We use functional health & wellness protocols to treat and support care for the injuries or disorders of the musculoskeletal system. Our videos, posts, topics, subjects, and insights cover clinical matters, issues, and topics that relate to and directly or indirectly support our clinical scope of practice.* Our office has reasonably attempted to provide supportive citations and identified the relevant research study or studies supporting our posts. We provide copies of supporting research studies available to regulatory boards and the public upon request.
We understand that we cover matters that require an additional explanation of how it may assist in a particular care plan or treatment protocol; therefore, to further discuss the subject matter above, please contact Dr. Alex Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900.
Dr. Alex Jimenez DC, MSACP, CCST, IFMCP*, CIFM*, ATN*
email: coach@elpasofunctionalmedicine.com
Licensed in: Texas & New Mexico*
References
Ariyanfar, Shadi, et al. "Review on Headache Related to Dietary Supplements." Current Pain and headache report vol. 26,3 (2022): 193-218. doi:10.1007/s11916-022-01019-9
Bryans, Roland, et al. "Evidence-based guidelines for the chiropractic treatment of adults with headache." Journal of Manipulative and physiological therapeutics vol. 34,5 (2011): 274-89. doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2011.04.008
Diener, H C et al. "The first placebo-controlled trial of a special butterbur root extract for the prevention of migraine: reanalysis of efficacy criteria." European Neurology vol. 51,2 (2004): 89-97. doi:10.1159/000076535
Kajjari, Shweta, et al. "The Effects of Lavender Essential Oil and its Clinical Implications in Dentistry: A Review." International Journal of clinical pediatric dentistry vol. 15,3 (2022): 385-388. doi:10.5005/jp-journals-10005-2378
Maier, Jeanette A et al. “Headaches and Magnesium: Mechanisms, Bioavailability, Therapeutic Efficacy and Potential Advantage of Magnesium Pidolate.” Nutrients vol. 12,9 2660. 31 Aug. 2020, doi:10.3390/nu12092660
Mansouri, Samaneh, et al. "Evaluating the effect of Coriandrum sativum syrup on being migraine-free using mixture models." Medical Journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran vol. 34 44. 6 May. 2020, doi:10.34171/mjiri.34.44
Pareek, Anil, et al. "Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium L.): A systematic review." Pharmacognosy Reviews vol. 5,9 (2011): 103-10. doi:10.4103/0973-7847.79105
Skypala, Isabel J et al. "Sensitivity to food additives, vaso-active amines and salicylates: a review of the evidence." Clinical and translational allergy vol. 5 34. 13 Oct. 2015, doi:10.1186/s13601-015-0078-3
