The early onset of puberty in girls is linked to an increased risk of migraines | Life

NEW YORK, July 28 – A study by researchers at the University of Cincinnati's School of Medicine shows that the incidence of migraines in children varies little between boys and girls, but that the beginning of puberty could be "the starting point of migraine" in girls.

Migraine is manifested by frequent episodes of severe headaches, which may be accompanied by an intolerance to light and sound, or even nausea and vomiting. According to the Migraine Research Foundation, about 10% of American children of school age suffer from migraine. At age 17, this incidence increases to 23% for girls and 8% for boys.

"We know that migraine-like girls and boys are almost the same age until the onset of menstruation," said Vincent Martin, professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine and director of the Center for Headaches and Disease. face pain of the UC Gardner Neuroscience Institute. "When the rules start in girls, the prevalence increases dramatically, but what our data suggests is that it happens even before that."

The new study, unveiled in mid-July at the annual meeting of the American Headache Society, shows that when puberty begins earlier than average, the risk of migraine increases.

The study involved 761 girls ages 8 to 20 years old from Ohio, New York and San Francisco, over a 10-year period.

Migraines at the beginning of puberty

Volunteers completed questionnaires about their migraine status. In the sample of the population, 85 girls (11%) were officially diagnosed with migraine, 53 (7%) could have migraine and 623 (82%) had no signs of migraine.

Every 6 to 12 months, scientists looked for signs that could indicate the onset of puberty in participants aged 8 to 10: bad development, pubic hair appearance, and / or early period.

The researchers found that girls with migraines had already had their first period and that their bads were more developed than those without migraines. On average, bad development had occurred four months earlier in migraine sufferers and the rules had started five months earlier.

Although the relationship between migraines and menstruation has long been established, this study looks at the earliest stages of puberty and may indicate a link between precocious puberty and adolescent migraine development.

"Our study implies that the very first exposure to estrogen could be the starting point for migraine in some teenage girls," concluded Dr. Martin. "It may be the Big Bang theory of migraine." – AFP-Relaxnews