Obesity Can Give You A Headache

Ukmedix is constantly looking out for the latest in weight loss, obesity and diet research and the most recent bit of research that was unveiled at the Annual Meeting of the American Headache Society based in L.A is that overweight children and teenagers have a much greater chance of suffering from headaches than thinner children. The researchers alos noted that the children who were obese had a greater chance of suffering from poorer qualithy of life due the headaches. They were noted to have missed school and days out more often than the thinner children.

Previous research has shown this obesity headache link to be true for adults but this study is the first to show the connection in children. The new study did not prove that it was the obesity that was directly responsible for the headaches and it could be that one of the obesity related problems in the cause of the headches indirectly. The actual reason for the increase in frequency and intensity of headaches in obese people is not known and can only be guessed at.

Overall nearly 500 children from the ages of 3 to 18 were looked at and examined and it was noted that 91% suffered from migraine headaches and that 9% suffered from headache types. In all it was seen that child headaches were 36% more likely to occuring in overweight children compared to the rest of the population and also that even though 21% of the children with headaches in the research were overweight only 16% of all other thinner and normal weight children are.

The levels for obesity and being overweight were were determined using a BMI scale in accordance with good medical practice.