Oh, your aching head! Headaches are one of the most painful and debilitating afflictions. Vascular headaches result from dilation of the blood vessels in the head, whereas non-vascular, or psychogenic, headaches result from stress. Many headaches are caused by neuromuscular skeletal imbalances. Low blood sugar can also be a cause.
Migraines are considered a vascular condition. They are often preceded by auras in which objects appear surrounded in light. Strange smells, numbness, and difficulty with speech may also occur. Blood vessels can constrict and then over dilate, which causes pain. The pain can be general or local, but it is usually on one side of the head, in the frontal or temporal region. Migraines may also manifest as numbness, tingling, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. The pain may shift from one side of the head to the other. Attacks may last less than a day, up to three days, and in some cases weeks. Migraines may occur cyclically or from a particular food allergy. Yeasted breads, gluten-rich foods, citrus fruits, and processed meats can also bring on migraines. Menstrual cycles and birth control pills also may be factors.
Stress, poor posture, and lack of sleep can all contribute to tension headaches. Tension headaches are more likely to occur as one’s day becomes increasingly stressful. Neck pain often goes along with tension headaches. The pain may be on one or both sides. Here’s how to find relief from headache pain.
HERBS FOR HEADACHES
A number of herbs can help reduce the frequency and intensity of headaches. Look for capsules containing the following herbs at natural food stores and take as directed:
• Butterbur, also known as petasites, has a potent anti-inflammatory/anti-allergenic effect, which has been shown very effective in reducing headaches, specifically migraines. Two-thirds of participants in a study published in the medical journal, Headache (2005) had more than a 50 percent reduction in migraines when taking butterbur.
• Feverfew stops blood platelets from releasing too much serotonin and histamine, both of which can dilate blood vessels and lead to headaches. A review of research about feverfew published in the medical journal, Public Health Nutrition in 2000 showed that it was safe and effective at preventing migraines. Feverfew works best as a preventative taken on a daily basis rather than when a headache is already in progress.
• Ginger inhibits biochemical pathways associated with inflammation and prevents blood platelet aggregation. It also increases oxygen utilization and blood flow to the brain.
Cures from Grandma’s Kitchen
An Irish folk remedy for curing headaches is to loosely tie a bandanna around the head and slip slices of raw potato between the head and bandanna. Place the potatoes where the pain is, over the temples or eyes. Lie down in a quiet room. After an hour, the potato slices should be warm and the headache relieved. Slices of apples or peeled aloe vera can be used in place of the potatoes.
• White willow inhibits prostaglandin production, which can contribute to inflammation. It contains salicin, a forerunner of aspirin, but it is much milder.
You can also try making a compress of tea of lavender, peppermint, or rosemary. Soak a cloth in the hot tea and apply it to the forehead and back of the neck. Chilling the tea and making a cold application may feel even better. You be the judge.
Thrifty Cures!
Eating two apples a day can help prevent headaches by providing sufficient anti-inflammatory enzymes. Go for tart apples, as the sour flavor will help move liver stagnation, which according to Asian medicine is a contributing factor in headaches.
Skip This!
Caffeine causes blood vessel constriction, so caffeine consumption and withdrawal can cause headaches. It is best to gradually decrease caffeine rather than remove it from your diet all at once. Nicotine can also cause headaches by constricting blood vessels. Other foods that can trigger headaches include chocolate, wheat, citrus, corn, tomatoes, apples, bananas, peaches, peanuts, onions, and red meat. These are common allergens and thus cause inflammation. Minimize excess spicy foods, chocolate, fats, and fried foods, and avoid ice-cold foods and drink. Ice-cold foods cause constriction in the blood vessels, which can cause the head to feel tight and painful.
Foods high in the amino acid tyrosine, such as aged cheese and wine, can cause migraine headaches. The class of chemicals known as vasoactive amines can also cause headaches in some people. This includes the following:
• Histamines in aged cheese, eggplant, spinach, tomato, chicken liver, and wine
• Tyramines in avocados, bananas, cheese, citrus, red wine, peanuts, fermented, pickled and smoked foods, plums, sourdough bread and baker’s yeast
• Phenylethylamine in chocolate and cheese
Also avoid chemical food additives such as sulfites, nitrates, nitrites, and red and yellow dye. Chewing gum can also stress muscles, leading to a headache.
SUPPLEMENTS FOR HEADACHES
Throbbing in the eye area (caused by vasoconstriction) can be eased by 100 mg of niacin, which is a vasodilator. Don’t be afraid of the ten-minute hot prickly rash this may produce. It will not last and will not harm you.
Magnesium (500 mg daily) relaxes muscles and can help migraine and tension headaches. Essential fatty acids such as those found in fish, flax, and hemp seed oil can also help by reducing the inflammation associated with headaches. Take 1 teaspoon (5 ml) daily or follow the directions on the bottle of capsules you choose.
The supplement 5-hydroxytryptophan (5HTP) is a precursor to serotonin, and those with low levels of this brain chemical are more susceptible to pain. Taking this supplement according to the bottle’s dosage guidelines may help as well.
BEST FOODS TO HEAL HEADACHES
Eat smaller, more frequent meals to keep blood sugar levels on a more even keel and to prevent headaches. Foods to eat more of include black sesame seed, carrots, celery, and scallions. They are all rich in important trace minerals and improve liver function which promotes optimal health.
Eat raw cabbage to cure any headache, and use radish to cure headaches in the back of the head. Both help energy move downward in the body, rather than rising to the head.
If you’re in the kitchen, also try inhaling deeply from a jar of mustard! It helps improve circulation to the head via the nasal passages.
Skip This!
Electromagnetic pollution can be a factor in headaches. Do you live near major power lines? Is your bed near an excessive number of clocks, a TV, stereo equipment, or computer ware? Do what you can to minimize any of these factors, such as moving the bed or electric paraphernalia.
Avoid exposure to hot sun, which can bring on headaches. Wear a hat when outdoors.
Cures from Grandma’s Kitchen
A simple folk remedy to cure a headache is to sit with your feet in hot water. Add 1 teaspoon of ginger (2 g) or mustard powder (3 g) to each gallon (3.8 L) of water. While doing this, apply a cold compress to the back of the neck at the base of the skull for five minutes.
Another folk remedy is to dunk both hands into hot water (within reason) for 1 minute.
SOOTHING PRACTICES FOR A HEADACHE
Try unwinding in an aromatherapy bath of lavender, peppermint, or rosemary. Stuffing a sachet full of aromatic headache herbs like peppermint, rosemary, and lavender can make an aromatherapy headache pillow. Take it to bed with you. Breathe in the comforting aromas.
Pay attention to how you hold yourself. When muscles are tight, circulation throughout the body is impeded, often resulting in pain. Do you clench your jaws or hold your neck tight? Biofeedback training can teach a headache-prone person to relax more and can also improve circulation. When dealing with a headache, lie down, do deep slow breathing, and practice tensing then relaxing each part of your body.
For tension headaches, try yoga. Pranayama, meditation, and neck rolls can all relieve headaches, but avoid excessive forward bends and backbends.
One hydrotherapy technique for alleviating headaches is to sit on a waterproof stool in the shower with your legs apart, bending forward with your hands clasped in back of your neck. Allow your elbows to fall between your knees so your upper back muscles get stretched. Aim a spray of warm or hot water toward the back of your head for 5 minutes. Turn off the water, dry off, and then soak a face towel in very cold water. Apply it to the same area you were spraying with hot water. Leave in place for half a minute. Some find that spraying a cold jet of water directly onto the soles of the feet constricts blood vessels and relieves headache too.
You can also take ten deep inhalations from a bottle of essential oil of rosemary to alleviate a headache. Visualize breathing in the colors violet, blue, or green, which are cooling to inflammation.
OTHER REMEDIES FOR A HEADACHE
An Asian folk remedy for curing a headache is called Li-Shou. It is done by standing with your feet about 20 inches (50.8 cm) apart. Rub your hands together to warm them and then gently stroke your face 30 times from the forehead to the chin in the same direction. While doing this, partially close your eyes and look down at your toes. Then extend your arms in front of you at waist level with your fingers touching, swinging them back and forth 100 times. This helps to divert blood from the head to the hands as well as stimulate endorphin production.
WHEN TO SEE YOUR M.D.
Sometimes headaches require medical attention. See your health-care practitioner for the headache in the following situations:
• Was caused by a blow to the head.
• Gets worse when you cough, sneeze, or vomit.
• Is accompanied by fever, memory loss, double vision, or speech or hearing difficulties.
• Is accompanied by sexual, bladder, or menstrual problems
• Appears suddenly in a patient who is elderly and if arteries on the side of the head are engorged.
• Is accompanied by sweating and fever.
• Begins after taking some kind of medicine.
Rather than simply blocking out the pain of a headache, it is important to determine the cause and change it.
The acupuncture point hoku can be stimulated with the fingers to give headache relief. It is located in the fleshy mound in the hand just above where the thumb and forefinger bones come together.
Many who suffer from headaches have also been helped by hypnosis, which can help you let go of emotional patterns that contribute to head pain. Craniosacral work is also very helpful in releasing stored tension in the head, neck, and spine. Some people even find that if they can have a bowel movement at the onset of a headache, the headache will diminish because the body is eliminating toxins.
This Helping Heal Headache article is taken from :
The Country Almanac of Home Remedies - Brigitte Mars
