The Value Of Migraine Research

A severe illness that afflicts tens of millions of individuals is a migraine headache. A migraine headache is characterized by severe head pain and often leaves the individual incapacitated. Specifically, the symptoms of a migraine headache are extreme head pain, nausea and vomiting, blurred or double vision, and sensitivity to light and noise.

When an individual is in the throes of a migraine headache they are often unable to function. Generally, an individual takes pain medication, goes to bed and allows the migraine headache to run its course.

As with most illnesses, the key to understanding the cause and providing treatment and prevention is to conduct medical research. Providing migraine research to alleviate migraine headaches is of equal and paramount concern not only for the medical community, but for the migraine sufferer as well.

Why Migraine Research Is Needed

The need for migraine research to be conducted and increased can be seen in the various statistics surrounding the affects of migraine headaches. Some of the affects of migraine headaches not only deal with the quality of an individual's health, but also eat away at the fabric of the economy of the country.

First of all, it is important to know that migraine sufferers not only feel the effects of this incapacitating illness, but also their immediate family members and friends as well. This serious illness that affects women more than men reduces the quality of life for the entire family when the member of the household is incapacitated due to a migraine headache.

In addition, it is estimated that when an individual is the victim of a migraine headache there are economic consequences affiliated with the individual being victimized by this illness. It is estimated that the economy loses billions of dollars each fiscal year due to the result of lost work days when an individual is unable to function at his or her job due to a migraine headache.

Migraine Research Being Conducted

There have been many migraine research studies conducted in an attempt to find a correlation between why migraine headaches occur and other abnormalities within the human body. For example, one migraine research study suggested that there was a direct correlation of the onset of a migraine with individuals who had a hole in their heart. This hole in the individual's heart is specifically known as the foramen ovale. In addition, it was found that when this hole was repaired there was a corresponding decrease in migraine activity

Another migraine research study asserts a direct correlation between low blood sugar and episodes of migraine headaches. The study conducted by a university demonstrated that individuals who overreacted to glucose suffered a decrease in their blood sugar level and subsequently experienced a severe headache. Obviously, there may be some value or truth to this assertion as it is a well documented fact that certain foods can trigger migraine headaches.