Skip to content

Top Navigation

Health.com Health.com
  • Health Conditions A-Z
  • News
  • Coronavirus
  • Diet & Nutrition
  • Fitness
  • Beauty
  • Mind & Body
  • Lifestyle
  • Weight Loss
  • Newsletter
  • Promo

Profile Menu

Join Now

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Health.com

Health.com Health.com
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Is Your Doctor Gaslighting You? Here's What to Do

      Is Your Doctor Gaslighting You? Here's What to Do

      How to handle a physician who doubts or dismisses your symptoms. Read More
    • 9 Signs It's More Serious Than the Common Cold

      9 Signs It's More Serious Than the Common Cold

      Doctors explain how to tell if you have a head cold or something more serious that requires medical attention, such as the flu, strep throat, meningitis, or mono. Read More
    • How Your Period Changes During Your 20s, 30s, and 40s

      How Your Period Changes During Your 20s, 30s, and 40s

      From easier cramps to a heavier flow, here's a guide on what to expect decade by decade. Read More
  • Health Conditions A-Z

    Health Conditions A-Z

    See All Health Conditions A-Z
    12 Anxiety Symptoms That Might Point to a Disorder

    12 Anxiety Symptoms That Might Point to a Disorder

    The symptoms of anxiety can be hard to detect. Here are the ones you need to pay attention to, and how to know if you may have an anxiety disorder.
    • Allergies
    • Anxiety
    • Birth Control
    • Breast Cancer
    • Coronavirus
    • Chronic Pain
    • Cold, Flu, and Sinus
    • Depression
    • Digestive Health
    • Diabetes (Type 2)
    • Eczema
    • Eye Health
    • Fibromyalgia
    • Heart Disease
    • Headaches and Migraines
    • Oral Health
    • Pregnancy
    • Psoriasis
    • Sexual Health
    • Skin Conditions
    • Sleep
    • Thyroid
  • News

    News

    See All News
    Shannen Doherty Reveals Stage 4 Breast Cancer Diagnosis—Here's What It Means

    Shannen Doherty Reveals Stage 4 Breast Cancer Diagnosis—Here's What It Means

    "I'm petrified," the actress said when she shared the news that her breast cancer came back. Here's why a stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis can be so frightening.
    • Celebrities
  • Coronavirus
  • Diet & Nutrition

    Diet & Nutrition

    The Best (and Worst) Diets of 2020, According to Experts

    The Best (and Worst) Diets of 2020, According to Experts

    FYI: The keto diet isĀ not number one.
    • Food
    • Nutrition
    • Vitamins and Supplements
    • Groceries
    • Restaurants
    • Diets
    • Keto Diet
    • Mediterranean Diet
    • Whole30
    • Recipes
  • Fitness

    Fitness

    See All Fitness
    10 Moves for a Cardio Workout at Home—No Equipment Required

    10 Moves for a Cardio Workout at Home—No Equipment Required

    Stay in your living room and still spike your heart rate.
    • Cardio Workouts
    • Strength Training
    • Yoga
    • Ab Workouts
    • Arm Workouts
    • Leg Workouts
    • Butt Workouts
    • Fitness Gear
  • Beauty

    Beauty

    See All Beauty
    These 13 Women Prove Every Body Is a Bikini Body

    These 13 Women Prove Every Body Is a Bikini Body

    We're loving their inspirational, body-positive messages.
    • Skincare
    • Makeup
    • Hair
    • Nails
  • Mind & Body

    Mind & Body

    See All Mind & Body
    Why Do People Lie? We Asked an Expert

    Why Do People Lie? We Asked an Expert

    Here's the truth about lying.
    • Body Positivity
    • Self-Care
    • Misdiagnosed
    • Invisible Illness
    • LGBTQ+ Health
    • Right to Care: Health Diversity and Inclusion
    • Resolution Reboot
    • Wellness Warriors
  • Lifestyle

    Lifestyle

    20 Things You Should Throw Away for Better Health

    20 Things You Should Throw Away for Better Health

    Clean out expired products and clutter to make way for a healthier you.
    • Healthy Home
    • Pets
    • Family
    • Relationships
    • Style
    • Holidays
    • Sex
    • Gifts
    • Money
    • Tech
    • Medicare
    • Best Life Now
    • Health Reviews
  • Weight Loss
  • Newsletter
  • Promo

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Join Now

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

LIVE
  1. HomeChevron Right
  2. Headaches and MigrainesChevron Right
  3. 11 Health Risks Linked to Migraines

11 Health Risks Linked to Migraines

By Amanda Gardner
Updated November 06, 2017
Skip gallery slides
Save Pin
exercise-headache-gym-workout-pain-tired
Credit: vitapix/Getty Images
If you get migraines, you may be more likely to suffer from one of these related conditions.
Start Slideshow

1 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

More than migraines

Migraines are severely disabling, with symptoms ranging from intense head pain to nausea, vomiting, and fatigue. If you suffer from migraines, it's helpful to know some common warning signs, so you can prepare for or try to prevent one. Watch this video for signs that a migraine might be around the corner.

1 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Depression

lonely-sad-depression-anxiety
Credit: WIN-Initiative/Getty Images

If you have “episodic” migraines (those that occur once in a while), you have double the risk of depression than someone without any migraines. If you have chronic migraines (15 or more days a month), your risk doubles again, says Dr. Lipton, also a professor and vice chair of neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.

While it’s possible that people with migraines become depressed because of the pain, the depression can also come first. This suggests the two have something in common–genes or neurology or both. “The prevailing belief is that there’s some shared underlying predisposition to both disorders, and either one can come first,” says Dr. Lipton.

Some antidepressant drugs, notably amitriptyline, can actually treat migraines. Amitriptyline affects levels of the brain chemical serotonin, which raises the possibility that serotonin also plays a role in migraines.

2 of 12

3 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Anxiety

anxiety-migraines
Credit: Klaus Vedfelt/Getty Images

People with chronic migraines are even more likely to have an anxiety disorder than they are depression: Around half of people with migraines also have anxiety, according to the American Migraine Foundation.

Like with depression, the anxiety or the migraines can come first, says Teshamae Monteith, MD, director of the headache program and assistant professor of clinical neurology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. “Patients that have anxiety in life are more likely to develop migraines, and vice versa.”

Sometimes one treatment (often an antidepressant) works for both conditions; other times, people need separate treatments–medications for migraines and behavioral therapy for anxiety disorders. It’s important to find an anxiety treatment that works. People who go untreated may be less likely to stick with their migraine meds and may not respond as well to the drugs either.

3 of 12

Advertisement

4 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Stroke

stroke-brain-scan-xray-headache-pain
Credit: stockdevil/Getty Images

Several studies have found a link between strokes caused by blood clots and migraines with aura, the visual or other sensory symptoms that sometimes precede the actual migraine attack.

People who have migraines with aura have about twice the risk of a stroke as the general population, says Dr. Lipton, but overall, that risk is still very small. “Migraine, particularly with aura, is largely a disease of younger women and women are at a lower risk of stroke than men. Even though the risk doubles, it’s still incredibly low.”

Even so, there are ways to lower that risk even more by maintaining healthy blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels and not smoking.

4 of 12

5 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Epilepsy

epilepsy-brain-medical
Credit: KellyJHall/Getty Images

The seizure disorder epilepsy and migraine can both involve sensory disturbances and mood changes. Having one doubles your risk of the other, says Dr. Lipton, but either can come first. ”They’re both disorders of brain excitability, where the brain is likely to react to environmental stimuli, to sleep deprivation,” he says. “Some of the specific genetic causes of migraine also cause epilepsy.”

Because of those shared causes and brain reactions, certain anti-epilepsy drugs like topiramate and divalproex sodium can treat both conditions.

5 of 12

6 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Heart disease

heart-disease-blood-pressure-migraines
Credit: Getty Images

In addition to having a higher risk of stroke, both men and women with migraines (with aura in particular) also have a higher risk of heart disease, especially heart attacks. One study also found that migraine sufferers were more likely to have risk factors for heart disease, like high blood pressure and diabetes.

To keep yourself as healthy as possible, control your weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure.

6 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Asthma

7-breathless-after-exercise-asthma-symptoms
Credit: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc/Getty Images

Even though asthma is a respiratory disorder and migraine is a neurological condition, the two can go together. The common denominator may be inflammation.

“In asthma, there’s inflammation and excessive constriction of the airways,” says Dr. Lipton. “In migraine, there’s excessive inflammation of the blood vessels just outside the brain.” In fact, it’s this inflammation of the blood vessels outside the brain that may cause the excruciating throbbing pain that is the hallmark of a migraine headache.

The asthma drug montelukast can also help prevent migraines, says Dr. Lipton.

RELATED: 7 Signs You Could Have Asthma

7 of 12

8 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Obesity

Woman putting foot on scale
Credit: Wragg/Getty Images

If you already have migraines, excess weight can make them worse. If you’ve never had a migraine, obesity can actually trigger them. “Some studies have found that those who gain weight over time are more likely to have migraines,” says Dr. Monteith.

Like asthma, the common denominator may be inflammation, which can be caused by excess weight. Losing weight may help. One small study found that a group of obese people with migraines who underwent bariatric surgery and lost an average of about 66 pounds saw a decrease in the painful attacks.

Paying close attention to your diet can benefit not just your weight but also your migraines. Certain foods like red wine, chocolate, and processed meats can trigger attacks.

8 of 12

9 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Pain disorders

psoriatic-arthritis-back-neck-pain
Credit: Getty Images

Many pain disorders, including fibromyalgia and chronic pain of the neck, back, and shoulders, tend to go hand-in-hand with migraines, as well as other types of headaches.

It’s unclear exactly how migraines and other painful conditions are linked. “Some people may have genetic predispositions,” says Dr. Monteith, or it might have to do with pain medications themselves. "Patients that take medications for low back pain or other types of pain may become sensitive to the pain medication and might get overuse headaches,” she says.

Treatment depends on where the pain is coming from, but cognitive behavioral therapy as well as alternative therapies like acupuncture can help, says Dr. Monteith.

9 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Digestive issues

stomach-pain-cramps-indigestion
Credit: Michael Heim /EyeEm/Getty Images

Experts believe there’s an intricate relationship between the gut and the brain–they call it the gut-brain axis. Not only does your digestive tract affect your mood, but the gut and the brain even share similar tissues and chemical messengers, says Dr. Monteith.

People with migraines have a higher prevalence of a number of GI-related concerns, including irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and celiac disease. Research has even found that babies born to mothers who get migraines are more likely to have colic as infants.

10 of 12

11 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Restless legs syndrome

couple-bed-sex-std-gonorrhea
Credit: Eyecandy Images/Getty Images

Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a disorder that causes such a strong urge to move your legs that it can interfere with daily life, as well as with sleep.

No one knows exactly why RLS and migraines are connected, but the link may have to do with dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain involved in both movement and migraines.

There may also be a link between migraines and Parkinson’s disease, which develops when the brain no longer produces enough dopamine. One 2014 study found that people with mid-life migraines were more likely to develop Parkinson’s later on, but more research is needed, says Dr. Monteith.

To get our top stories delivered to your inbox, sign up for the HEALTH newsletter

11 of 12

12 of 12

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Bell's palsy

exercise-headache-gym-workout-pain-tired
Credit: vitapix/Getty Images

Bell’s palsy is a temporary paralysis of nerves in the face. Symptoms might include twitching, weakness, and drooping eyelids. Sometimes the symptoms happen only on one side of the face.

While Bell’s palsy symptoms might sound like those of a stroke, the two conditions are actually not related. However, one 2014 study found that people with migraines had nearly double the risk for Bell’s palsy. The researchers couldn’t say why there might be a connection but speculated that it could have to do with changes in blood vessels, inflammation, or infection, since some viruses have been linked to Bell’s palsy.

12 of 12

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Amanda Gardner

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 12 More than migraines
    2 of 12 Depression
    3 of 12 Anxiety
    4 of 12 Stroke
    5 of 12 Epilepsy
    6 of 12 Heart disease
    7 of 12 Asthma
    8 of 12 Obesity
    9 of 12 Pain disorders
    10 of 12 Digestive issues
    11 of 12 Restless legs syndrome
    12 of 12 Bell's palsy

    Share options

    Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

    Login

    Health.com

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • About Us
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Contact us
    • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Sitemap

    Connect

    Follow Us
    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Other Meredith Sites

    Other Meredith Sites

    • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
    • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
    • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
    • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
    • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
    • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
    • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
    • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
    • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
    • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
    • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
    • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
    • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
    • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
    • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
    • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
    • More this link opens in a new tab
    • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
    • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
    • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
    • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
    • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
    • Parents this link opens in a new tab
    • People this link opens in a new tab
    • People en EspaƱol this link opens in a new tab
    • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
    • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
    • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
    • Shape this link opens in a new tab
    • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
    • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
    • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
    • Travel & Leisure this link opens in a new tab
    MeredithHealth.com is part of the Meredith Health Group. © Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. All rights reserved. The material in this site is intended to be of general informational use and is not intended to constitute medical advice, probable diagnosis, or recommended treatments. All products and services featured are selected by our editors. Health.com may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.health.com

    View image

    11 Health Risks Linked to Migraines
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.