Health View Column
Migraines Demystified
By Kathy SummersWhen sinuses throb and ache, most people think it’s a sinus headache. But migraines cause sinus pain, too. And while one-sided migraines are common, a headache that affects both sides of your head may still be a migraine.
Location of pain often confuses people, says Mayo Clinic headache specialist Eric J. Eross of Scottsdale, Arizona. After evaluating 100 people who thought they had sinus headaches, Eross found 63% had migraines and another 23% had probable migraines. Almost nine out of 10 people who thought they had sinus headaches actually had migraines, according to the study presented at the American Headache Society 46th Annual Scientific Meeting in Vancouver, BC. (June 10-13, 2004).
People also mistake a migraine for a sinus headache when they have runny noses and watery eyes. But headache pain itself can trigger these symptoms. So can exposure to allergens, seasonal changes, and changes in the weather. It isn’t so much the weather as the change that causes the trouble, says Marcelo E. Bigal, MD, PhD, director of research at the New England Center for Headache in Stamford, Connecticut. The brains of migraine sufferers are extremely sensitive to change, Bigel explains.
In Bigel’s study, 34 percent of migraine sufferers were sensitive to changes in temperature or humidity; 14 percent were sensitive to changing weather patterns; and 13 percent were sensitive to changes in barometric pressure. While a whopping 51 percent had weather-related symptoms, researchers say any change or fluctuation can trigger a migraine --including changes in sleep patterns, hormone levels, or weather.
For relief, most headache sufferers take over-the-counter pain relievers or non-prescription antihistamines, with only 10 percent of headache sufferers taking the more effective prescription drugs called triptans.
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More to the point
Acupuncture also relieves headache pain, which can help if you’re trying to cut down on meds. Chronic headache sufferers who had acupuncture had fewer and milder symptoms than those taking conventional treatments, according to a large randomized study reported in the British Medical Journal.
Early in the study researchers found little difference between acupuncture and conventional treatments. But by the end of the year-long trial, acupuncture worked much better, especially for migraines. Patients in the acupuncture group experienced the equivalent of 22 fewer days of headaches per year, used 15 percent less medication, made 25 percent fewer visits to general practitioners, and took 15 percent fewer days off sick.
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Fuzzy Thinking Ironed Out
By Kathy SummersIf your thinking is fuzzy, your multi-tasking muddled, and you don’t know where you left your cell phone, it may be time to boost the iron. A clear and quick mind needs adequate iron as much as muscles and other body parts.
Even a small deficiency can significantly impair concentration and memory, says a Penn State University study presented at the Experimental Biology Meeting in Washington DC (April 2004). In the study, women with sufficient iron levels easily surpassed anemic women in every mental category tested—attention, memory, and learning. Lack of iron can also lead to breathlessness, fatigue, poor physical endurance, impaired immune response, temperature regulation difficulties, and changes in energy metabolism.
Recent federal surveys say between eight and 10 million Americans are iron deficient, particularly 18-35 year old women. Women with heavy periods are particularly at risk, although many don’t know they’re iron-deficient. The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for iron is 18 mg for women and 8 mg for men, but check with your doctor before taking supplements. Although admitting it isn’t easy, the National Institutes of Health recommends trying to get enough iron from your diet.
Boost your iron levels:
Eat red meat, poultry, fish and seafood.
Eat beans, leafy green vegetables, and fortified grains and cereals for good vegetarian sources.
Vitamin C helps with iron absorption, so try washing down iron-rich foods with orange juice.
The tannins in tea can interfere with iron absorption, so avoid drinking tea with food iron-rich foods.
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Fast Food Finagling
By Kathy SummersEver noticed how some teens gain weight on fast food while others don’t? Teens often overeat when served fast food, but lean teens tend to compensate for the over-consumption by eating less at other meals, says a study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (June 16, 2004).
Supersized portions of high calorie, sugary, high starchy, low fiber fun food is hard to resist. So, like the 75 percent of adolescents who eat fast food one or more times per week, most teens in the study overate the fast food regardless of body weight, say researchers from Children’s Hospital in Boston. But the overweight teens were less likely to compensate for the calories by adjusting energy intake throughout the day.
No one's recommending a fast-food diet. But if you occasionally indulge, do it like a lean teen: if you eat more now, eat less later.
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Addicted to Food? Take a whiff of this
By Kathy SummersThink you’re addicted to... fill in the blank: chocolate, pizza, ice cream? Well break out the Ben & Jerry’s -- you now have validation. Scientists recently acknowledged that for some people, even a whiff of a favorite food “lights up” a region of the brain normally associated with drug addiction.
To measure reactions to favorite fast-food fixes, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory looked at hungry volunteers’ brains with positron emission tomography (PET scans).Even without actually eating the food, seeing or smelling a favorite food significantly increased overall metabolic brain activity by 24 percent. The study, reported in NeuroImage Scans (April 2004), suggests what some of us suspected all along--the same part of our brain that controls drive and pleasure also activates hunger and desire for food.
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Know Your Fitness Personality
By Kathy SummersIf your one-size-fits-all workout isn’t working out, maybe it doesn’t suit you. After beginning an exercise program, 60% of people drop out within the first six months and 90% drop out within two years. “Tailoring a workout schedule to fit your personality can make it easier to maintain,” says University of Florida graduate student Amy Hagan who presented research results at the 2004 North American Society for the Psychology of Sports and Physical Activity annual meeting.
Hagen gave a 300-item questionnaire to 860 university students, sorting them into five personality traits: extraversion, openness, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and neuroticism. The cheat-sheet below, based on Hagen’s study, hints at where you might fit:
Extraverted - You’re sociable, crave excitement and love activity. You’re always on the go and would easily work out six days a week if you could fit it in. An intensive gym workout schedule of aerobics classes and weight training suits you better than slow workouts at home alone. When home alone is the only option, listen to music to help keep you going.
Open - You’re receptive to new experiences and prefer variety. Regularly scheduled workouts won’t do. Frequent outdoor adventures that include physical activities keep you motivated to get in peak shape.
Agreeable - You’re easygoing and usually go with the flow. Exercising regularly is not a problem for you, especially in the morning. But you’d happily tag along with any of the other types.
Conscientious - You’re strong-willed, determined, achievement oriented and organized. You prefer to take charge of your own exercise routine so it gets done right. A high-intensity workout with self-scheduled sessions suits you best. You’d rather lead your own cardio than have a fitness instructor micromanage you. Hire a fitness professional for a one-time consultation. Then take it from there.
Neurotic - You’re emotionally sensitive, a worrier, and easily scared or embarrassed. You are the least likely to exercise, but would get the most out of it because regular exercise reduces anxiety and stress. Boost your mood with cardio or low-intensity workouts. A home treadmill is a better investment for you than a gym membership. Better yet, try yoga, tai chi, and a dog that brings you his leash.--Kathy Summers is a health, fitness and nutrition writer in Cave Creek, AZ.
