A recent study of children and adults with nasal allergies found that there may be a link between allergies and migraines. Histamine, the compound that causes allergy problems may also help trigger migraines. During an allergic reaction, your immune system releases histamines.
The study looked at nearly three hundred people — both children and adults — and the presence or lack of migraine symptoms. For people with allergic rhinitis (also known as hay fever), a third of the participants met the diagnostic criteria for migraines. For study participants without allergy issues, only four percent of participants met the diagnostic criteria for migraines. When the study results were tallied, it seemed that patients with allergies were fourteen times more likely to have symptoms of a migraine than patients without allergies.
Researchers from Allergy & Asthma Care PA of Haddonfield, New Jersey, think that this result makes sense. Histamine, a chemical involved in allergic reactions, causes inflammation and blood vessel dilation.
Past studies have shown that many headaches thought to be caused by sinus pressure may actually be migraines instead. Migraines are known for throbbing pain, often concentrated on one side of the head, nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound. They can also come with facial pressure and nasal congestion — symptoms often attributed to a sinus headache. These shared symptoms can sometimes make it hard to distinguish between a migraine and a sinus headache.
Making the distinction between a sinus headache and a migraine is important for proper treatment. Both kinds of headache can be treated with common painkillers, but migraines may also require special medications. The researchers don’t see any evidence that taking antihistamines (for hay fever and allergies) can help relieve migraines. Antihistamines don’t generally treat blood vessel dilation. Instead, researchers are looking at using topical steroids to help treat migraines in people with allergies.