Migraine headaches plague over 28 million Americans -- most of them women -- according to the Mayo Clinic. Migraines are chronic, and frequently require medication to help sufferers live a normal life. Migraine medicines can come with negative side effects, especially for pregnant or breastfeeding women, so increasing your consumption of certain vitamins can help alleviate and prevent migraines naturally.
Effects
Migraines are severe headaches that can be accompanied by nausea and sensitivity to light and sound. Migraines occur from an imbalance in your brain's chemicals, particularly serotonin, which helps control pain. This imbalance can be triggered by a variety of causes, including hormonal changes -- like the menstrual cycle -- foods, stress, jet lag or even a change in barometric pressure. While medicine is available to help balance your brain's chemistry, vitamins can provide an alternative, natural remedy without the negative side effects of medication.
Vitamin B6
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin commonly found in bananas, chicken, salmon, tuna and beans that your body uses for purposes like the processing of protein and the production of antibodies. One of the chemicals found in vitamin B6, pyridoxine, helps the body to use the brain's neurotransmitters properly; a pyridoxine deficiency is thought to increase your risk of migraines.
Vitamin B2
Vitamin B2, also known as riboflavin, has been reported to help migraine sufferers. Vitamin B2 is an antioxidant, crucial for maintaining a healthy immune system, and helps your body produce red blood cells. Studies have demonstrated that vitamin B2 decreases both the frequency and length of migraines. Vitamin B2 can be found in a multivitamin, or taken as a specific dietary supplement. It can also be found naturally in red meat, poultry, fish and dairy, with the eight other vitamins in the B family.
Vitamin D
Technically, vitamin D is actually a hormone produced by your body, not a vitamin. However, in a recent study, 41.8 percent of migraine sufferers had a vitamin D deficiency. So taking steps to increase your body's production of vitamin D may help your migraines. Minor amounts of vitamin D can be found in fish, milk and fortified foods. You can also spend short amounts of time in the sun daily, increasing the natural production of vitamin D.
References
- Mayo Clinic: Migraine Headaches
- Mayo Clinic: Migraine; June 2009
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Vitamin B6 - All Information; Linda Vorvick, MD; March 2009
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin); Steven D. Ehrlich, NMD; June 2009
- American Headache Society: Vitamin D, Migraine and Health/Medical Complications: Optimize Therapy!; Steve D. Wheeler, MD, FAAN, FAHS et al.
- Migraine: Vitamin B6; Otesa Miles et al; November 2010
