Migraine has been around for a long time Has a close relationship with the elements. In addition to stress and hormones, fluctuations in meteorological conditions are among the most commonly cited triggers for attacks. “Patients often say they can predict the weather,” says Vincent Martin, director of the Headache and Facial Pain Center at the University of Cincinnati and president of the National Headache Foundation. They might expect rain in two or three days because an increased migraine alerts them to a drop in air pressure.
Martin, who studies the impact of temperature and other weather conditions on migraines, believes the climate crisis – which brings rising temperatures and more extreme weather events – could make the disease worse. “I think [climate change] It will have a huge impact on migraines,” he said.
This summer, Martin and colleagues presented a study that reviewed more than 70,000 daily diary entries from 660 migraine patients and cross-referenced them with regional weather data such as wind speed, temperature, humidity and air pressure. Researchers found that for every 10 degrees Fahrenheit increase in daily temperatures, the incidence of headaches increased by 6 percent. Martin said one reason why high temperatures may trigger migraines may be because of the loss of water and electrolytes during sweating. It’s also possible that the sun acts as a light trigger, meaning its bright rays may trigger migraines.
Other studies have similarly found a link between rising temperatures and migraines. A 2015 study examined emergency department admissions for migraines at a Turkish hospital over a year and compared them with different weather parameters such as temperature, humidity and pressure. Studies have found that as temperatures rise and humidity drops, the number of migraine sufferers increases.
Fred Cohen, an assistant professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York and a co-author of the study who worked with Martin, worries that climate change may have a direct impact on the burden of migraines. He published a separate review paper earlier this year that revealed a particular trend. The review found that while the prevalence of migraines (i.e., the number of people with migraines) has remained essentially unchanged in the United States over the past 30 years, migraine-related disability (depending on the time patients lose from work and work) has increased due to migraines. Social events sprung up for headaches.
Cohen and his co-authors found that by some measures, the number of people reporting migraine-related disability nearly doubled. This may be partly because doctors are better at assessing migraines, or because people are more aware of their condition and more willing to discuss it. But Cohen said it could also be because “something happened.” One explanation proposed by the study authors is changes in the environment.
Migraine sufferers should have more than just rising temperatures to worry about. Climate change has been linked to an increase in air pollutants, such as those from wildfires, another known trigger of migraines. Although the mechanisms by which pollution triggers migraines are unclear, multiple studies have found that short-term exposure to air pollutants can lead to spikes in migraine emergency room visits. In fact, during severe wildfires on North America’s east coast last summer, “calls to headache centers spiked,” Cohen said.
