Root Cause Medical Clinic: Common Cause of Headaches

Root Cause Medical Clinic handles headache pain for good, naturally. Most people deal with headaches by taking a pill to relieve the pain. Though this may seem like the easy thing to do at the time, it is important to note that taking a drug will not address the root cause of the head pain. Naturopathy focuses on remedying the underlying problem and sometimes it’s quite simple. Such factors as posture, water consumption, or diet may be all you need to change!

Is Poor Posture Causing Your Headaches?

Statistics show that the most common type of headaches is tension headaches that are caused by the spasm of muscles in your neck and ones that wrap over your scalp.

More often than not, such headaches are triggered when you have been working hard at your job or going through stressful times. If you find that you get headaches on a daily basis, get an ergonomic assessment of your workspace to rule out postural problems that may be contributing to your tight muscles.

Also, try a warm pack (or roll) around your neck to relax those muscles. A gentle massage of those muscles can be very helpful also. If you have a tendency to ‘store your tension’ in your upper back and neck (that is, these muscles tend to tighten up when you are stressed), I recommend seeing a chiropractor or physical therapist get an evaluation as soon as possible. These practitioners can prescribe exercises that can help reduce the effects of the stress on your muscles as well as normalize the function of the nerves that make the muscles work.

In addition, a good magnesium supplement can help relax muscles – consult your clinician to see if this may be right for you.

Are You Drinking Enough Water?

You may be surprised to learn that dehydration can cause headaches. Drinking large amounts of caffeine in the form of coffee, black tea or sodas can contribute to dehydration.

Be sure to monitor how much water you drink daily. Most people only drink water when they feel thirsty and interestingly, when you’re dehydrated you don’t tend to feel thirsty often.

60% of the human body is made up of water and the body needs water for many vital functions. Drinking at least 64 ounces of water spread through the day (especially on a warm day!) will keep your brain hydrated and prevent the onset of a headache due to dehydration. Another formula naturopathic doctors use to determine your water need is this:

Take your weight and divide it in half. That number represents the number of ounces of water you should consume throughout a day. Try not to exceed more than 8 oz (1 cup) per hour.

Is Your Blood Sugar Falling?

A nagging headache can be one of the first signs that your blood sugar may be dropping too low. This can happen if you have irregular eating habits and wait until you are famished before you eat, or if you’re not properly absorbing what you are eating.

It is a good idea to snack throughout the day. Be wise about the snacks you choose – pick protein-rich snacks like almonds, walnuts, and turkey or chicken cold cuts. I also recommend starting your day with a healthy, well-balanced breakfast.

Root Cause Medical Clinic: When You Should See a Doctor

Next time you have an urge to reach for that Ibuprofen or Tylenol tablet, consider that there may be a very simple reason and a simple solution to get rid of that headache for good.

However, if even after taking all the above precautions your headaches persist, see your doctor investigate the underlying cause. There can be multiple causes for chronic headaches ranging from nutrient deficiencies, food allergies, environmental allergies, high blood pressure, circulation problems, and at times more severe reasons such as a brain tumor (fortunately quite rare).

Root Cause Medical Clinic has a Clinical Nutrition department, of which I am a part. Here we see outstanding success treating headaches of all types, including chronic migraines. The key is to find a practitioner that understands and focuses on diagnosing the underlying root cause and appreciates all the factors that could be contributing to headaches.

Please let me know if you have any other questions and what you would like to see covered in future blog posts.