Migraines More Prevalent in Women
“Like in all neurological diseases, a combination of genetics and environment play a role,” says Richard Pearl, MD, a clinical neurologist in Suffolk County, N.Y. “One environmental factor is estrogen but a genetic predisposition has been firmly established.”
Although hormones are unlikely to explain the entire picture, a recent study revealed that women with a history of migraines may be less likely to develop breast cancer than other women. Because breast cancer has been linked to higher lifetime exposure to estrogen, the fact that migraines are more common when there is a drop in estrogen may support the hormone theory.
Christopher Li, MD, PhD, a cancer epidemiologist at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Wash. and study co-author is interpreting the results with caution. “It may be the treatments used for migraines,” Li told Scientific America, which include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications. But if the painkillers are excluded, the lower levels of estrogen may be responsible for lower breast cancer rates and migraine headaches.
The symptoms, duration and frequency of migraines can vary greatly from person to person. They may be debilitating for some people.
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