Almost all of us experience tension-type headaches now and then. But frequent tension headaches can interfere with your daily life. Aside from taking over- the-counter or prescription medication, what else can you do to stop the pain? The answer may be as simple as taking good care of yourself.
• Eat healthy foods. Don’t skip meals, especially breakfast, and stay hydrated with plenty of water.
• Exercise regularly. During physical activity, your body releases certain chemicals that block pain signals to your brain. Check with your doctor. Walking, swimming and cycling are often good choices. Start slowly. Exercising too vigorously can trigger some headaches.
• Get enough sleep. Wake up and go to bed at the same time every day — even on weekends. Relax before you go to bed.
• Avoid excess caffeine. Sometimes caffeine helps curb headaches. In fact, many headache medications contain caffeine. But heavy daily caffeine use (more than 200 milligrams of caffeine a day) can cause headaches.
• Quit smoking. Cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide, a known headache trigger, and nicotine has been shown to interfere with the liver’s ability to break down headache medication.
—Source: Mayo Clinic
Good Neighbor Pharmacy Health Connection, Sept 2015
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