Chronic Headache Causes

How often have you been hindered by a chronic headache? If your answer is way too often, then probably you suffer from migraines that cause these chronic headaches. This may not be the only reason. In many cases, chronic headaches are accompanied by several other symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness, nausea, and body ache. Whatever the symptoms, the very fact that your headache is 'chronic' may be a cause for concern. Also, you must know that you are not a lone sufferer. A large number of people suffer from these, due to their lifestyle pattern and subsequent health conditions. Here, we try to identify these chronic headache causes.

Causes of a Chronic Headache

Most often, chronic headaches occur because the receptors in your brain that are meant to control pain and suppress it are not functioning well. In such a case, even minor triggers may result in chronic headaches. Take a look at some of the triggers mentioned here.

Stress
Stress is one of the biggest triggers of not only chronic headaches, but also to a host of other health problems. Conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, brain dysfunction, all have a cause lying in stress. Even with chronic headaches, the case is the same, where they may be caused due to mental or physical stress. When you are under heightened stress levels, due to work or personal problems, it is likely to affect your overall functioning and even cause a headache. Even if you are anxious about a particular event, are depressed, or suffer from hypertension you may be afflicted with chronic headaches.

Anemia
Anemia is a condition characterized by low iron and hemoglobin levels in the blood. One of the symptoms of anemia is chronic headaches, along with fatigue. If you suffer from this condition, it may be one of the reasons you are experiencing those painful headaches so often.

Foods and Food Additives
There are certain food additives that you may be sensitive to, that may be the cause for the chronic headaches you are suffering from. For instance, monosodium glutamate was found to be one of the triggers for a variety of health conditions, which was why it was banned later. Also, processed foods that contain artificial sweeteners, high levels of sodium, nitrates and other preservatives may cause chronic headaches. Sometimes, just drinking too much milk or consuming rich, milky products trigger off those painful headaches.

Hormonal Imbalances
Fluctuations in hormonal levels are likely to be one of the reasons you get a chronic headache. Usually women are most affected by this, during their menstrual cycle, menopause or at the intake of oral contraceptive pills. This may happen even during pregnancy. Sometimes, you may have to undergo a hormone replacement therapy due to various reasons, which can further intensify the chronic headaches.

Conditions of the Brain
Chronic headaches may be caused as symptoms of underlying conditions of the brain. These include meningitis infection, a severe brain injury, a brain tumor causing headaches, and inflammation of blood vessels that can cause a stroke. In such a case, your headache may be accompanied by other symptoms such as fever, pain in the neck, a pain different from the regular headaches you have, and weakness. Also, if you experience a chronic headache after an injury on your head, it may have affected your brain. In case you experience any of these symptoms, do consult a doctor immediately.

Excess Intake of Medication
Chronic headaches can also be caused as a side effect of consuming too many medicines for a headache. If you take a pain killer to alleviate your headaches on a regular basis, their prolonged use will prove ineffective, and may further intensify your headache. The time duration of the medicine intake, and the type of medicine you have been taking to cure your headaches may affect the intensity and the recurring pattern of the headaches. This condition is known as medication overuse headache or a rebound headache.

Conditions of the Sinus
If you are suffering from a sinus infection, where your nasal passages have been blocked completely, it can cause a case of chronic headaches, and fatigue. This condition has a specific term known as sinus headache.

Excess Consumption of Caffeine
If you are a regular drinker of tea, coffee or aerated drinks, the caffeine content may trigger off chronic headaches. Though you may have felt better after drinking a cup of tea or coffee when suffering from a headache, if you keep up the habit and drink it too often, it will become a cause for the headache.

Usually, identifying the causes of a chronic headache is difficult, which is why choosing the right treatment for this condition becomes a task. Identifying and then treating chronic recurring headaches may take some time, but if you suffer from them more often than not, it would be best to visit your doctor and find a cure for them. Since in some cases, a chronic headache can be a symptom rather than a condition, diagnosing yourself can be risky, so avoid attempting it.

Disclaimer: This Buzzle article is for informative purposes only, and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.