Who Is At Risk Of Headaches?

Who is more likely to get a headache? While the exact causes of headaches of all kinds is still an ongoing research effort, many studies point to some likely culprits. Those factors vary with the different types of headache - tension, cluster or migraine.

Tension headaches are so-named because they are believed to be the result of (and to produce) different kinds of muscle tension. The risk factors for that are, not surprisingly, related to the different ways that can happen.

Something as simple as holding a phone for an extended period between the ear and shoulder, for example, can contribute to causing a headache. The muscles are stretched and compressed in a fairly unnatural position and the result is inflammation, constriction of blood flow, stretched fascia and tendons, and so forth. The end result is often a headache.

Or, in those who have the chronic habit, teeth clenching or grinding are common risk factors. This is similar to TMJ disorders in which the temporomandibular joint connecting the jaw to the skull is irritated. This can often happen at night during sleep when the person has no conscious control.

But more subtle and surprising risk factors are at work as well.

Family history is one of the clearest indicators of who is at risk, for all types. Migraines have a strong tendency to run in families, while 40% of those with tension headaches share a family history with sufferers. Genetics is clearly a factor.

Depression, whether genetic or environmental is a factor. Which is cause and which is effect can be difficult to sort out, but depression is correlated with 70% of those who suffer chronic daily headache. In all likelihood there is a reciprocal relationship. Those who suffer from anemia, more often women (who tend to need extra iron), are at greater risk of headache.

Those who suffer from insomnia or sleep apnea are more prone to headaches. Though both may be the result of underlying factors (more so than one being the cause of the other), they are frequently associated. Anxiety, whether during the day or at night, often accompanies the pair of causes.

Gender is a factor, in all types of headaches. Women are at greater risk than men for both tension headaches and migraines. In the latter case, around 17% of women get them, while only about 6% of men, according to one large study. Cluster headaches, in which pain occurs for short periods every day for weeks, more frequently affect men, however.

The reasons, the precise differences that produce the different percentages are unclear. But differences in lifestyle can largely be discounted these days, with women in the workplace as often as men.

Some lifestyle differences that can be common to both sexes are definite risk factors, though. Skipping meals, drinking excess alcohol (especially red wine, though 'excess' varies from person to person), stress and sometimes even excess exercise can increase the risk of headache.

Though family history, gender and other unchosen factors can't be controlled they can be dealt with by proper treatment. In the case of lifestyle issues, the ability to change and control is even stronger. For chronic sufferers, the first step is proper diagnosis.