There are a few things at play that could help us understand the connection between migraine and drinking alcohol. These headaches cause very intense pain that often primarily affects the area behind one eye. More than half of those who experience cluster headaches say that alcohol is a trigger. Of the 1,547 participants, 783 said that alcohol was a trigger, and 195 were not sure. Mixed models obtain the differences between each individual effect and the population estimates, thus estimates from Table 4 can be adjusted to provide an individualized model for each user.
Can alcohol cause migraines?
No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician. As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content. Alcohol is embedded in our society, and it is difficult to be in a public marijuana addiction space without seeing a reference to alcohol or being offered a drink. Alcohol is broken down in the liver by an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase.
- Try sticking to small amounts of alcohol and pay attention to how your body responds.
- Dehydration plays a crucial role in triggering migraines after alcohol consumption.
- For some, a migraine diary is enough to understand the consequences of each drink.
- Electrolyte-rich beverages or sports drinks can replenish lost minerals.
Migraine and Head Pain After Drinking? How to Avoid Aggravating Alcohol Headaches
You can also consider drinking migraine after drinking alcohol a hydration supplement like Cove’s Oasis to boost that effect. It is common for the symptoms of withdrawal to become more severe over time until you are able to fully detox from alcohol and end the withdrawal process. For many, the symptoms of withdrawal get worse before they get better. However, most people are able to overcome most symptoms within a week of their last drink.
Minimize Your Migraine Risk as Best as Possible When Drinking
The majority were female (419/487, 86.0%), actively working (293/378, 77.5%). Most of the females had regular menstrual cycles (247/419, 58.9%). Individuals reported a mean (SD) of 6.1 (3.3) migraine days per month and 3.7 (1.7) migraine attacks per month. Migraine episodes triggered by alcohol consumption typically happen within about an hour. Delayed alcohol headaches or hangovers generally take hours to start, such as the following day after a night of drinking too much.
- Alcohol is considered a potential migraine trigger, though research isn’t clear on why.
- A 2018 study of almost 2,200 migraine patients found that more than a third of them — 35.6% — reported that alcohol was a migraine trigger.
- As dehydration can cause headaches, staying hydrated when consuming alcohol is key.
- Monument is an online alcohol treatment platform that can help provide support every step of the way.
- For migraine sufferers, certain types of alcohol can be particularly triggering and worsen symptoms.
What Alcohol Causes the Most Headaches and/or Migraine Attacks?
The questionnaires included demographics, headache history and characteristics, health-related habits (smoking and alcohol consumption), and hangover symptoms. The similarity between the symptomatology of these two common disorders, migraine and hangover, has led us to compare alcohol hangover symptoms in migraine sufferers and nonsufferers. We hypothesized that migraine sufferers are more susceptible to specific aspects of the hangover symptomatology complex, namely those that are similar to the migraine attack. Keeping a migraine journal that includes the type of alcohol consumed, time, and any other potential triggers can help you determine whether it’s in your best interest to avoid alcohol.
