2023-10-08 07:08:10
by Elena Meli
There are different types of headache, knowing how to distinguish them is the first step in finding the right therapy. A free guide with the Corriere della Sera of 10 October
Right now, approximately one billion two hundred million people around the world are suffering from a headache attack. This was estimated by research from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, re-evaluating over 350 studies conducted between the 1960s and 2020 to understand how widespread headaches are in all its forms, from migraines to the most common tension headache: the results confirm that head pain is one of the most frequent disorders, everywhere, with 52% of the world population experiencing at least one episode during the space of a year.
The women most affected
The numbers also appear to be growing and the authors also underlined how the most severe headaches, with 15 or more days of pain per month, affect women 3 times more often, among whom the prevalence of migraines is also double. also true for tension headache, the most common headache, which presents with persistent, dull, mild-medium intensity and widespread pain, the classic sensation of a circle in the head that tightens the head: It is estimated that 90% of sooner or later women have at least one episode, compared to 70% of men, explains Maria Clara Tonini, head of the Center for the diagnosis and treatment of headaches at the San Carlo Clinic in Paderno Dugnano (Milan). The cause is at least partly linked to hormonal fluctuations linked to the menstrual cycle, which influence pain sensitivity and the mechanisms underlying headaches. Between the ages of 25 and 55 the greatest probability: it coincides with working age, therefore tension headache is a problem that can seriously compromise personal life and productivity.
Predisposition
The precise causes of tension-type headache are not yet known with certainty, it is possible that there is a genetic predisposition to hypersensitivity towards pain, which leads to perceiving stimuli as painful that would not normally be so, and there is probably also a hyper-contraction of the muscles of the shoulders, neck and head, perceived as painful due to hypersensitivity to pain. Certainly some factors can trigger an attack: strong stress, mental or physical, lack of sleep, cold, travel, incorrect workstation, visual tiredness or glasses not suitable for one’s vision defect are some of the elements that can favor the appearance of the ache.
The rules to follow
The rules for preventing headaches are those for a healthy lifestyle: sleep at least 7 hours, eat 3 times a day because fasting can induce headaches, exercise during the week and drink enough, at least one and a half liters of water per day, advises Tonini. Dehydration, for example, can be a trigger for headaches: if you sweat a lot or don’t hydrate yourself enough, your organs and systems suffer and one of the initial symptoms is often a headache, so much so that sometimes it’s enough to replenish the fluids by drinking. water to make the pain disappear. Can what we eat also give us a headache? In reality, it is more than anything else overeating or fasting that can trigger the pain, the cases in which the headache explodes just by eating a bit of chocolate or mature cheese are rare, replies the expert. Everyone should learn to recognize what can cause a headache because individual sensitivities exist: some are able to predict how long after a specific triggering factor will cause pain and this can be used to take the right measure, an analgesic drug, promptly increasing the probability that it works, concludes the expert.
October 8, 2023 (modified October 8, 2023 | 07:07)
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