And debilitating. Sufferers of frequent migraines can find it difficult to keep a job that will tolerate numerous absences due to the severe headaches that often leave them unable to function.
Modern medicine has recently provided enormous relief for migraine sufferers in the form of medications that can be taken once an attack has begun. Drugs like Imitrex and Amerge act quickly to dissipate a migraine headache by altering the muscle tone of the arteries in the brain which are the cause of this type of headache.
Migraines are one of a class of vascular headaches, meaning that the ultimate source of the headache is a change in the tone of the blood vessels inside the brain. Effective treatments for migraines are not generally painkillers. Instead, they work on the blood vessels which secondarily relieves the pain.
There are two ways to tackle migraine headaches with medical and/or herbal treatment. We've talked about the first way. Basically you wait until you get the headache and then take something to relieve it. The second way is to use a daily medication to prevent migraines from occurring or at least reduce their frequency and severity.
Modern medicine doesn't have anything particularly great to choose from in the area of migraine prevention. Many of the medications we use for this purpose are also used for blood pressure reduction, so if you don't have high blood pressure to begin with, the side effects can be difficult to tolerate.
Enter feverfew, an herbal remedy which holds promise in the prevention of migraines with relatively few side effects, (You were wondering when I'd ever get around to talking about herbs, weren't you?) Feverfew carries the scientific name of Tanacetum parthenium and is a perennial bush which grows throughout Europe. As the name suggests, it was originally used for fever reduction but I didn't find any information to suggest it has modern value in that area. It is primarily the dried leaves which are used for medicinal purposes.
I've read anecdotal reports of feverfew being effective in the treatment of active migraine headaches but there isn't any scientific evidence to back these reports. Migraine prevention, on the other hand, is where feverfew shows the most promise. Several good studies have shown its effectiveness in reducing the frequency and severity of migraine headaches when taken orally on a daily basis.
Go To Page: 1 2
