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Why Tequila Might Give You A Migraine

We have lots of board-certified clinicians that conduct virtual consultations every single can alcohol cause migraines. Sign up with us today and download our app to book your first appointment. You could also drink sports drinks that contain electrolytes, though be careful as they can also contain a lot of added sugar. Dr. Elizabeth Klenk graduated from the University of Toledo with a BA in Biology and from the University of Cincinnati with a Master of Science in Biological Sciences followed by her MD.

If you do drink alcohol, it’s important to be mindful of your consumption and to experiment to see what works best for you. Some common symptoms are a severe headache, vertigo attack or stroke like symptoms that can last for hours or even days. Migraine sufferers may also experience nausea, vomiting, and sensitivity to light and sound among other symptoms. To understand more about the symptoms experienced with migraine attacks, read our articles on vestibular migraine or different types of headaches. In conclusion, no significant association between alcohol consumption with migraine and tension headache was found in many studies [26, 28–30].

Alcohol as a trigger factor

Furthermore, an old prospective study reports that ADs trigger vascular headaches but not TH. Brandy, red wine, and rum have the highest levels of congeners, while gin and vodka contain fewer of these chemicals. However, a 2019 study found higher rates of vodka consumption among drinkers with frequent migraine attacks. The response to alcohol varies from person to person, and there is no alcohol that absolutely will not cause a migraine or other headache.

• Although alcohol is commonly thought to trigger migraine attacks, the relationship is still contentious.
• Our objective was to compare alcohol hangover symptoms in migraine sufferers and nonsufferers.
• This is the hangover effect that appears in the morning following alcohol consumption when the alcohol in the blood has reached zero.
• Staying hydrated and keeping alcohol consumption to a minimum can decrease the chance of experiencing a headache.
• The most common causes of alcohol-related headaches are dehydration, a lack of sleep, and a high caffeine diet.

However, if you do drink, be sure to do so in moderation and stay hydrated. Vodka and gin are both clear liquors that are made through the distilling process discussed above. This process removes congeners, which means that these drinks are less likely to trigger migraine attacks.

Body Weight

Scientific rigor is lacking to prove what patients have reported for centuries about wine triggering migraine attacks. There are many possible triggers for migraine attacks, including stress, bright lights, loud noises, weather changes, certain foods and drinks, and changes in sleep or hormone patterns to name a few. Migraine sufferers also show different drinking habits – they consume less alcohol, especially beer and liquors. It is possible, that due to higher tendency to develop hangover, “experienced” migraine sufferers voluntarily reduce their alcohol consumption, to avoid unpleasant hangover experience. Data were analyzed using IBM® SPSS® Statistics, Version 20 software. Migraine sufferers consume less alcohol, especially beer and liquors, and are more vulnerable to migraine-like hangover symptoms than nonsufferers.

Therefore, alcohol may have an action similar to other strong vasodilators such histamine, CGRP, and glyceryl trinitrate , which trigger migraine. However, disagreement between cranial vasodilatation and drug-provoked headache suggests that vasodilatation per se could not explain the induced headache. More than 50% of patients indicate ADs are triggers of cluster headache attacks in chronic CH and in episodic CH only during bouts . Studies in Asiatic population, similarly to an older study on Italian population, show a smaller percentage of CH patients reporting ADs as a trigger, which may be due in part to different alcohol habits. This great variability appears even considering only CH patients who consume alcohol. Migraine causes a specific type of headache that involves neurological symptoms such as light sensitivity and aura. Other types of headaches, including severe headaches, can occur as a result of alcohol consumption.

Types of headaches associated with alcohol

However, some of these studies show that alcohol acts as a trigger at least occasionally in a high percentage, but as a frequent/consistent trigger in only 10% of patients. In other eight studies performed in India, Japan, Turkey, China, and Italy, the percentages of alcohol or wine as migraine without aura trigger are very low (0–11%).

• Factors such as sensitivity to specific ingredients in alcohol, body weight, or genetic factors may cause headaches in some people after consuming alcohol.
• In addition to red wine, other alcoholic beverages, including beer, white wine, and liqueur, have also been reported as headache triggers.
• Generally speaking, a cocktail headache is usually a pulsating or throbbing pain and a hangover headache is more related to fatigue and a general feeling of being run down.
• In particular, the dehydration aspect is seen as a big migraine trigger.

” Maybe, see which type of alcohol is affecting your head the most. Some people believe that drinking alcohol while suffering from migraine headaches can exacerbate the symptoms, whereas others believe that it can actually relieve them. If you are having a migraine, you should consult a doctor before consuming alcohol. The most effective way to prevent tension headaches or a migraine trigger is abstinence. Not drinking is easier said than done for some, but it is the only proven, time-honored way to prevent alcohol-induced headache disorders. Certain alcoholic beverages are worse for triggering headaches than others. One study from 2018 concluded that red wine is the biggest cause of headaches – with 77.8% of participants saying it was a trigger.

What to know about alcohol and migraine

If you do notice a pattern, especially with particular types of alcohol over others, you may choose to avoid the offending drinks. We asked these experts what a person who struggles with migraine would expect if they stopped drinking, and the answers were varied. Overall, physicians state that stopping drinking certain types of alcohol, like those with tannins, may lead to fewer migraine headaches. Savage-Edwards advises that if alcohol is found to be a trigger, then it’s best to avoid it. Another theory is that tequila contains a high amount of histamines, which are also known to trigger migraines.