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Men, Migraine, and Hormones

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You don’t hear about it too often – but yes, men have issues with migraine and hormones too.

Of course many women have a very clear, definite connection between their migraine attacks and their menstrual cycles. Although it’s not quite the same for men, there is growing evidence that there is an important hormonal connection.

Man - migraine, sleep and testosterone

First, some basic information. In popular culture, we often talk about “male” and “female” hormones. Estrogen, for example, is associated with women. But although estrogen levels tend to be higher in women, men have estrogen too – and it’s an important part of their biology as men.

Studies have been done on levels of “female” hormones in men, and even how this may relate to migraine. For example, a study in the journal Neurology investigated the estrogen (estradiol) / androgen (e.g. testosterone) ratio in men with migraine, finding that androgen levels were low compared to estrogen in men with migraine (see Female sex hormones in men with migraine).

A new study, published in Neurology International, focused on testosterone levels in men with migraine compared to the general population. Generally speaking, men with migraine did indeed have significantly lower testosterone levels. A large number of these had levels lower than the normal laboratory range.

Immediate questions arise – does migraine lead to low testosterone levels, or do low levels lead to migraine? Either way, there is growing interest in testosterone supplementation for men with migraine.

What are common symptoms of low testosterone? Well, erectile dysfunction is an obvious one – a condition that has links to migraine, especially for men in their 30s.

Other symptoms include:

  • Lower sex drive
  • Depression (strongly linked to migraine)
  • Hair loss
  • Trouble sleeping
  • Low energy
  • Increased body fat
  • Poor concentration

There are good ways to increase testosterone naturally, which may help fight migraine – or the effects of migraine! Here are some quick suggestions, with links at the bottom of this article to read with more information.

  1. Be more active. This is not necessarily 6 days a week at the gym. Just start moving more. There are plenty of great tips out there – for migraine patients, I do recommend increasing your activity gradually, but steadily. Weight training is especially helpful.
  2. Watch out for processed foods, especially refined sugars and flours. There are various reasons why these foods can cause testosterone problems.
  3. Prioritize sleep. It may seem like a catch-22, if low testosterone makes it harder for you to sleep. Don’t be stressed if you can’t get to sleep when you want to – but do make sleep a priority in your life. Again, there are lots of great tips out there.
  4. Eat healthy fats and proteins. You will do this differently depending on your lifestyle, but think avocados, fish, butter, eggs, chia seeds, steaks, coconut oil, and nuts.
  5. Get outside in the sun. You need that vitamin D. If you’re outside for 30 minutes every day but still have low levels, consider a supplement.

Researchers aren’t sure what the connection is between migraine and testosterone in men. In this recent study, evidence was collected which suggests that testosterone, as a “neuroprotective agent”, may help fight migraine and related symptoms – which means that raising your levels may indeed decrease your migraine attacks.

And one more surprise – this may even be true for women. Granted, most women aren’t looking for huge testosterone increases. But a small therapeutic increase may help women fight migraine as well, as the researchers note.

For more, see Testosterone levels in men with chronic migraine (pdf).

More fun reads on naturally increasing your testosterone (for men):

So Many Women with Migraine: New Research asks Why.

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When the question is raised why so many more women have migraine compared to men, many are satisfied with the simplistic answer,“It’s hormones”. This answer isn’t getting women better treatment, so it’s time we start to dig a little deeper.

Male/Female Differences in MigraineDo hormones play a role in gender differences when it comes to migraine? Yes. But a new study is getting more specific – and looking for ways that migraine could be better treated in women.

Writing about the study, ScienceDaily made a couple of interesting points.

First, not only do more women have migraine, they also don’t respond as well to treatment.

Also, many new treatments and discoveries start out as experiments with rats and mice. But often, only male rodents are used. Could that by why our treatments are skewed to help men more than women?

This research, however, was done using both male and female rats. The researchers looks at NHE-1 levels. According to the article:

NHE1 regulates the transport of protons and sodium ions across cell membranes, including those that make up the blood-brain barrier. When NHE1 isn’t present at high enough levels or doesn’t function properly, it can cause increased pain signaling that leads to a migraine. Problems with NHE1 can also directly alter the ability of migraine drugs to cross the blood-brain barrier.
[source]

Surprisingly, NHE-1 levels were four times higher in male rats. It appeared that when estrogen levels were high, NHE-1 levels were low. That could mean that defences are lower for females when migraine attacks.

Whether or not this will lead to new treatment, it does demonstrate the need to dig deeper into the way pain and migraine function, and especially to look at how it they may function differently in women. It could be that we’re been missing out on the best treatments for women because we just aren’t looking carefully enough.

For more information:

Does BPA Trigger Migraine?

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BPA, otherwise known as Bisphenol A, just won’t stay out of the news.  The controversy is heated and passionate, and is getting more complex all the time.

BPA is a xenoestrogen that is used to make many plastics around the world.  It’s an industry worth billions, and it’s just one of the strange things that make “life” in the “modern” world possible.

BPA and xenoestrogens - Migraine risk?

A xenoestrogen can imitate estrogen in the body – that alone makes it a suspect for migraine, which in may women is connected to estrogen cycles.  Could BPA actually be a trigger for many of the health issues in our society, such as migraine, sexual and reproductive disorders, breast cancer, obesity, and memory problems?

For this to be proven, a chain of events needs to be verified.  Is the BHP in plastic containers (and even lining the cans much of our food comes in) actually getting into our food?  Or can it get into our bodies in other ways?  If so, are the amounts high enough to actually do damage?  How much damage?

The problem with long term exposure is that it’s hard to prove a connection, and if it only causes problems in some sensitive people, it’s even harder to prove.

In the USA, the FDA’s current position is as follows:

FDA’s current assessment is that BPA is safe at the very low levels that occur in some foods.  This assessment is based on review by FDA scientists of hundreds of studies including the latest findings from new studies initiated by the agency.

…

FDA will continue its review of BPA, including supporting ongoing studies; reviewing all new science bearing on the safety of the chemical; and seeking input from the public, other experts, and other agencies.  Meanwhile, the agency acknowledges the food and packaging industries’ efforts, in response to consumer demand, to provide products that are BPA-free…

But BPA studies continue to be in the news.  Recently, a review of previous BPA studies have led some scientists to believe that BPA can be dangerous at lower levels – much lower levels – than was previously believed.

This has concerned many in the medical field.  For example, Breast Cancer UK is now calling for a ban on BPA, due to breast cancer risk.

Migraine and BPA Study

The new study comes from The University of Kansas Medical Center in the USA.  As is common in initial migraine studies, the tests were done on rats.

The simple result was that BPA increased migraine-like symptoms in rats – or at least behaviour that indicated migraine-like symptoms.

The researchers also noted that BPA changed how estrogen functioned in the body, indicating that the BPA-estrogen-migraine connection may not be so far-fetched.

Now this doesn’t mean that using a plastic container will trigger an attack – but it may mean that exposure over time could be helping to trigger your attacks or make them worse.

Let’s make it more complicated…

Let’s imagine a world where BPA has been banned – labels proudly shout “BPA FREE!”, and consumers buy plastics with confidence.  We no longer need to worry about xenoestrogens!  Or – do we?

I’m afraid we do.  BPA is not the only xenoestrogen out there.  Less known, but perhaps even more dangerous, other xenoestrogens are being used in plastics.

So in a BPA-free world, we would still have a lot to worry about.  Studying BPA is only the first step in studying a whole series of chemicals that are ubiquitous in our modern society.

Avoiding the Problem?

Although it’s virtually impossible in the modern world to avoid contact with BPA and other similar chemicals, there is some common wisdom about limiting your exposure.  For example:

  • Do not microwave foods in plastic containers.
  • Don’t wash plastic containers in your dishwasher, or use harsh soaps to wash them.
  • Be cautious about reusing plastic water bottles, especially those that have been left in a hot place (your car).
  • Throw out plastic food containers that are damaged (chipped, scratched).
  • Avoid plastics with a 3 or 7 recycling code (they’re more likely to contain BPA).
  • Of course, you could also avoid plastics and canned food.  Go for fresh wherever possible.

The one I didn’t mention was “look for a label that says BPA FREE”.  The reason should be obvious – there’s a good chance that another similar, maybe even more dangerous, chemical is being used.  If you don’t know what the ingredients are, just knowing that one bad ingredient isn’t inside isn’t much of a help.

Summary

Of course, that’s the common wisdom for those trying to avoid BPA.  The debate goes on about whether or not we should bother.  Still, this could be another reason why people going for more of a fresh food diet often see such an improvement in their health.

Because of the nature of the problem, it could be a long time before we have more solid evidence.  But if xenoestrogens are making us sick, do we need to wait a generation or two in order to feel better?

Further reading:

Do Oral Contraceptives Impact Migraine Pain?

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A small study in Germany (published last month) of 39 women was conducted to see if there was any relationship between oral contraceptives, migraine, and pain thresholds.  The findings suggest that oral contraceptives do make a difference.

Oral Contraceptives and Migraine

The study checked on pain thresholds using cold, heat, pressure, and electric current, and detection thresholds (cold, heat, electric current).  First of all, when migraineurs did or did not use oral contraceptives, it made no difference in any of these thresholds.  In other words, patients on oral contraceptives did not seem to be more "sensitive" to pain.

In fact, during the actual migraine attack these women were found to be less sensitive to certain types of pain.

But the connection came at the end of menstruation.  At this point, migraineurs taking an OC had much more severe migraine attacks than migrainuers not taking an OC.  Migraineurs also tended to have lower estrogen levels, especially those taking OCs.

This study is another confirmation that women migrainuers need to take a close look at estrogen levels and the use of contraceptives when they’re looking for answers.

Study abstract:  The Effects of Oral Contraceptives on Detection and Pain Thresholds As Well As Headache Intensity During Menstrual Cycle in Migraine.

Treatment for hot flashes

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Hot flashes.  Many women treat these symptoms of menopause with estrogen.  That’s all very well, but some women find that the estrogen is causing them more migraine attacks – and that means jumping out of the frying pan into the fire.  Continuous estrogen therapy has been the best for some migraine sufferers.  But others still can’t get free of the migraine attacks.  But a Canadian-led study, published in the January issue of Clinical Science, may have a solution.

The answer may actually be a 40 year old treatment.  Medroxyprogesterone, a synthetic version of the hormone progesterone, was found to be just as effective and safer than estrogen.  In the one year study, there was no evidence that the treatment caused blood clots, breast cancer, or migraine attacks.  This doesn’t mean help to alleviate migraine, just that the treatment will not cause attacks.

The author of the study was Dr. Jerilynn Prior, professor of endocrinology at the University of British Columbia.  She says,”As a doctor who takes care of women who have very bad hot flashes, the good news is that those with migraine headaches … now they have an equally effective choice.“

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The articles on Headache and Migraine News are © 2004-2026 J. Cottrill.
Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of each article, and to point you to further sources of information. However, this site is for informational purposes only and should never replace a visit to your doctor.