Children’s Migraine Headaches Symptoms
Did you know that children can suffer from migraine headaches attack? In fact, according to one online resource, approximately 10 percent of children worldwide are affected by this health care condition. Children as young as five years old can have migraine headaches.
But what causes migraine headaches in children? What causes migraine headaches in adults applies to children as well. Genetics, certain food and drugs, ailments, emotional and physical stress and geological aspects are some of the contributing factors that can cause migraines in either adults and children. In addition, migraine headaches in children can also be due to an underlying an infection or a secondary head trauma.
How can you tell if your child is experiencing migraines or headaches? What are the signs and symptoms? Similar to the classic migraines in adults, children can also experience mild to severe discomfort or pain in the eye area, temples and acuteness of discomfort can differ as well. It is imperative to look for signs of pain like irritability, uncontrollable crying, facial grimacing and frowning. On the other hand, there are children who experience severe abdominal pain instead of headache. Stomach pain can also be accompanied with light and sound sensitivity. Remember that deafening noise, blinding lights and strong scent and odors can heighten the pain as well. For children who are suffering from migraine symptoms, it is best that they stay in a dim lighted room. Normally, deep and uninterrupted sleep can alleviate the pain.
Besides sleeping for extended periods of time, it always help to pay your doctor a visit for consultation and reliable prescription medications and over the counter analgesics. Aside from synthetic drugs, household remedies are also helpful in alleviating the headaches and migraines symptoms. Preventive measures are also done to manage migraine headaches.
Previously, we tackled that food and diet can also cause the incidence of migraines. Foods that can aggravate the migraines symptoms are processed and canned foods, soy and beans, chocolate and preservatives.Moreover, parents should be careful in giving over the counter medicines. The kidneys and liver can be damaged with high dosage of drugs. If you are unsure what to give your child, give your health care provider a call. By this, you are sure that what you are giving your child is accurate. Besides taking over the counter pills and drugs, parents and significant others can teach their children the importance of a health and regular diet, in addition to keeping a regular sleep time. Exercise can also prevent migraine attacks for some children. However, too much exercise and physical movement can exacerbate the condition.
It definitely helps to pay special attention to your child’s headaches sure to consult your health care provider if the migraine headaches exacerbate or if it occurs repeatedly in order to rule out tumor or abnormal growth. If you want to know what symptoms to look for if the migraine headache is caused by brain tumors, check your child’s dexterity, balance, language, vision and walking.