Safflower Oil to Fight Migraine?

A case report this month in the Journal of Clinical Neuroscience tells the story of a 45 year old woman with chronic migraine. This woman decided to do an experiment with edible oils.

But she didn’t eat the oils – instead, she used them as massage oils, testing to see which of two alleviated migraine symptoms.

The two are often used in massage – olive oil, and the much less common safflower oil.

This woman had tried many common medications (such as sumatriptan, amitriptyline and topiramate), but for various reasons couldn’t tolerate them.

But she found that safflower oil did help (not so much the olive oil). The report suggests that safflower oil, applied to the base of the neck, may be beneficial for fighting migraine (see Topically applied linoleic/linolenic acid for chronic migraine).

Of course this is just one person’s experience. But such a simple test would be easy to try yourself.

The evidence for safflower oil as a topical anti-inflammatory isn’t strong, but there are those who feel it is beneficial. One interesting suggestion is that safflower oil may be absorbed easily enough that it may have a nutritional effect – even if it’s only applied to the skin!

But there is reason for caution here. First of all, not all safflower oils are created equal. This report specifies linoleic/linolenic acids – this is, indeed, the edible form of safflower oil. But there is also refined and unrefined safflower oil. How it is made can make a difference in how safe it is.

And if safflower oil is absorbed nutritionally, there is a further concern about the omega 6 vs. omega 3 ratio. Today, you will often hear that most people are getting lots of omega 6, and not much omega 3, which can cause problems. Dr. Robert Cowan writes:

. . . mounting evidence suggests that shifting away from the omega-6 fatty acids to a diet richer in omega-3 fatty acids may decrease headache frequency. Many headache specialists, myself included, also feel that it is beneficial to maintain approximately the same ratios of good and bad fats, carbohydrates, protein, and fiber from day to day. This means maintaining not just a healthy diet, but a consistently healthy diet. [source]

Dr. Cowan isn’t the only migraine doctor who encourages patients to increase omega 3 (as opposed to omega 6).

Read another doctor’s thoughts about safflower oil here.

Different oils may help different people. Does safflower oil fight migraine? Only you can tell, at this point. And a little trial is not likely to cause much harm.

But before you make safflower oil massage a regular part of your life, you should be investigating how the oil was processed, and whether another oil might be more beneficial.