Tips

22 July 2006

Community article – getting to sleep with migraine

To give you an idea how it all works, I posted some of your comments on getting to sleep with migraine. This is our first community article, still in progress but already very helpful. Thanks to so many of you from all over the world who stopped by to leave your comments! More of you are welcome to come by and comment.

For those of you who don’t know what this is all about, Community articles are a new feature here at the website. I ask the question, and you give your advice for all our visitors to read. Together, we can fight migraine, cluster, tension, and all those headaches out there – too many to mention.

For more information, or to leave your own comments, visit the Community articles section.

27 March 2006

Prevention

James Tips 0

When people think about headaches and migraine in particular, they’re often in the middle of one. And when you’re in the middle of one, you don’t care about much else except how to make it go away. But if that’s all you’re ever thinking about, you may be missing out on an important aspect of migraine treatment – prevention.

When you look at clinical trials for migraine prevention, you’ll often see statistics about frequency and severity – in other words, did people get less migraine attacks, and were those attacks less severe? If so, the prevention is a success.

There are lots of things people do to avoid attacks in the first place, such as taking a daily preventative drug, keeping their body healthy through various types of treatment, or simply making lifestyle changes. But if you’re having migraine attacks often, and if they’re making a significant impact on your life, don’t just wait for one to hit – see if you can find ways of stopping them before they start. Not only will it help with the symptoms, it may improve your overall health.

Check this article for an overview of migraine prevention options.

17 March 2006

Migraine fraud – one less

James News, Tips 1

Do you remember the migraine scam we talked about back in January? Well, it looks like the owner of the site, Arthur Vanmoor, has been indicted by a Fort Lauderdale grand jury for selling fake cures for migraine and cancer. He’s been charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act violations. "Migraine Miracle" and the other products he tried to rip people off with are no longer allowed to be sold or promoted. It’s about time.

The scary thing is that this site was particularly easy to spot, and yet still people were sending in their money. It’s not that people are stupid – we can all be scammed, and there are much trickier sites out there ready to take your money. If someone tells you they have a cure for migraine, you’d better do your research. There are some great treatments – many people have been treated and are now migraine-free. But an overall cure for migraine? We’re still waiting for that one.

What’s wrong with your soda pop?

James Tips 3

Here’s an interesting success story that I just got from a HeadWay subscriber:

Thought maybe your readers would enjoy this bit of news. Recently my migraines started back up again to daily migraines and very strong in severity. They were so debilitating I almost couldn’t work anymore. For so long I was doing pretty good. I realized that what I had changed in my diet was soda everyday. I had gone back to work, and I was drinking a coke at lunch for the caffeine boost. I stopped drinking it, and in about 3 days my migraines were just about gone! What a relief. My husband said he had seen something on TV about drinking colored soda and how bad it is for you. The program said you should drink only "clear" sodas if you have to drink soda. (Clear like 7-UP, Sierra Mist etc.)

~Sandra from NY, USA

I’m not exactly sure about the stats on "colored soda". Could the report have something to do with the phosphoric acid? The caramel color? I’ve heard rumours on the caramel colour thing, but I’m waiting for more information. Anyone know anything about that?

Of course there are other things in soda pop that could trigger migraine, such as caffeine and that sudden infusion of sugar (or questions about aspartame in diet versions). Whatever it is, there’s growing evidence that some people are more sensitive than others. We need to pay attention to changes in our eating habits – a small thing can make a big difference.

28 February 2006

Healthy whole grain recipe

James Tips 0

Before all the triggers and migraine fighting foods and health supplements and vitamins, perhaps the best thing you can do to avoid headache and migraine is to eat a healthy, well balanced diet. Sure, but how do you do that? Well, try to keep your focus on foods as close to the source and unprocessed as possible. Keep the meats to a minimum. And eat everything in moderation.

When so many migraineurs also deal with stomach problems, it’s all the more important to make sure your diet is healthy. One thing that’s been a real help to me is making sure I get some decent healthy whole grains in my diet every morning (uh oh – is this starting to sound like a cereal commercial?). I use a granola recipe that is packed with migraine and headache fighting foods, including oatmeal and olive oil. I shared this recipe with HeadWay subscribers, and I thought I’d share it with the rest of you as well. All the details are in the recipe itself, which is in pdf format. Right click to download the Multigrain Granola recipe!