ShareThisAh, the holidays.
Such a joyous occasion. Such a freakin' headache.
As festive as the yuletide season promises to be, it also can be prime time for nagging, throbbing, nausea-inducing headaches for many celebrants.
It's not just those who suffer from regular migraines, either. Tension headaches, experts say, are more prevalent during November and December than in any other two-month period.
A 2007 survey by the National Headache Foundation found that 52 percent of respondents suffered increased headaches during the holidays. Of those, 94 percent missed a family or social event and 87 percent missed at least one day of work because of the condition.
So, what (or who) is to blame?
-- Those long checkout lines at the mall?
-- Aunt Edna's incessant blathering?
-- Toddlers whining for presents?
-- Too much eggnog?
-- That store-bought Christmas ham?
Answer: Yes to all.
We spoke with California neurologist, Dr. Marc Lenaerts, about causes and treatments of headaches during the holiday season.
Q: What's the biggest trigger for headache sufferers this time of year?
A: Lack of sleep. Or changes in sleep patterns. You might oversleep on (December) 25th, for example, and that change might be a big migraine trigger for someone.
Q: What exactly is a "trigger"?
A: A trigger is something that often makes the headache occur. But the cause is genetic. Avoiding the trigger often avoids you (having) a number of headaches, but it doesn't guarantee it.
Q: We've heard that red wine can trigger headaches. Is that true?
A: It's a bit debated. Red wine seems to be more of a trigger. But in some, white (is), too. Others of my patients say (hard) alcohol does it. But the statistics say red wine is most (prevalent). People have to know themselves. This morning, I had someone who said champagne is my trigger. Any type of alcoholic beverage -- beware.
Q: As for foods consumed in the holiday season, are processed meats as bad as everyone's mother says they are?
A: The more it's processed, the more added chemicals, the worse it can be. Meats, more than other foods, have sulfites that can be harmful. And nitrates, the thing they put in hot dogs, can also trigger a migraine. Again, these are just warning lists, not no-don't-eat-that lists. Be cognizant.
Q: People know the debilitating effects of migraines. But what about the so-called tension headaches? Why do people with no history of migraines get tension headaches?
A: It's a bit difficult to explain and actually a misnomer. It's not quite muscle or psychological "tension." But it feels like it and sounds like it when you listen to people. Here's what happens: Imagine the minute you have arthritis in your neck. That hurts. Your joints are inflamed. It goes along your nerves to your brain, and you process that and have pain, right?
Imagine that the processing of pain, the brain centers that deal with it, are sick and are giving your mind the improper sensation that there is pain where there's not much to trigger it. Now, your pain is amplified or even created by brain malfunction in the pain center. It has more to do with psychological stressors.
Q: What can we do to treat tension headaches and migraines?
A: The proper posture and the avoidance of last-minute rushes will help avoid tension-type headaches. And besides trigger avoidance, get proper hydration and proper sleep. NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs), usually in high enough doses, 400 to 600 (milligrams), help.
But you must be swift in treating. If you delay abortive treatment too long, a headache becomes increasingly intractable. If you have a migraine starting at 10 a.m. and lasting until 8 p.m., if you tried to treat it at 4 p.m., it's not going to work as well.
(E-mail Sam McManis at smcmanis(at)sacbee.com)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
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