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The Science of Headaches and Migraines: What Research Reveals
From tension headaches to debilitating migraines, pain is your body’s signal that something is wrong. Learn the underlying causes — and how chiropractic care can help you find lasting relief.
Headaches, like any pain in the body is a sign that something is not quite right. Your brain will create for you the sensation of pain if it thinks there is something wrong or if it thinks there is a potential problem.
The head is actually the most common site of pain in the body
Research Studies
A number of scientific research studies have shown chiropractic patients had fewer headaches that control groups and took less medication by the end of the follow up period. There appeared to be a small beneficial effect of being seen more often but the results of this study weren’t conclusive when it comes to frequency of care.
Spinal Dysfunction
This means that for some people if their spines are not functioning well it can cause headaches or migraines. But for others who have spinal dysfunction – what chiropractors call subluxations – it may cause back pain or neck pain. A lot more research is still needed to be done in this area to figure this out.
Do you suffer from headaches, or do you know someone who does? If you do, know that you are not alone. The head is actually the most common site of pain in the body. Headaches can range from a mild pain that comes and goes, through to constant intense pain that’s so bad you have to crawl into bed with a bucket in case you throw up!
Headaches, like any pain in your body, are a sign that something is not quite right. Your brain will create for you the sensation of pain if it thinks there is something wrong or if it thinks there is a potential problem.
For example, your brain will give you a headache if you have taken too much medication – letting you know there is some chemical toxicity going on! And some headaches are a warning of life-threatening illness. But for most people, headaches are not a sign of life-threatening illness and are more the consequence of lifestyle and daily behaviour.
We know now, from a lot of neuroscience research studies, that when your spine is not moving properly, this changes the way your brain perceives what is going on in and around your body, the way it integrates other sensory information, and the way it controls your body.1-3
The movement of your spine is very important for your brain to know where you are in space, and since you cannot see your spine with your eyes, your brain relies on the information it receives from the small muscles closest to your spine and skull.
Studies suggest chiropractic care may help people suffering from different types of headaches.
If the segments of your spine are not moving properly… what chiropractors call being subluxated… this may, for some people, manifest as headaches. Others may experience back pain. Research has shown that when a chiropractor then gently adjusts these subluxations, it helps the brain to more accurately ‘see’ what is going on in and around the body.
So, when you get adjusted by your chiropractor, if your spinal dysfunction was manifesting as headaches, these may improve. If your spinal dysfunction was manifesting as back pain, then this may get better. If it manifested as colic or bedwetting then these symptoms may improve, and so on and so on.
Chiropractic May Help
But what does the research say about chiropractic care and headaches? Researchers have reviewed all of the randomised controlled trials that have looked at the effects of chiropractic care or spinal manipulative therapy on headaches.4-6 In these studies, they have compared chiropractic care to sham care or other interventions.
The results show that chiropractic care does really help some people with headaches and migraines! In one study,7 the researchers looked at the effects of two months of chiropractic care in 127 people suffering from migraines. After two months, they found that the people in the study who received chiropractic care got better compared to the control group with all the migraine outcomes that they looked at.
They actually found that for about 1 in 5 people, their migraines almost went away completely after two months of chiropractic care! And for half of the study participants, their migraine frequency significantly reduced. The results of this study suggest that a large number of migraine sufferers respond well to chiropractic care! We don’t know for sure who will respond well, and we don’t know how much of an influence the placebo effect has, but for some people, when they get under chiropractic care, their migraines may almost completely resolve within just a couple of months.
In another study,8 80 patients with chronic headaches that were due to a problem in their neck, called cervicogenic headaches, received 8 weeks of chiropractic care and another similar group of 80 patients received 8 weeks of light massage.
What they found in this study was that the patients receiving chiropractic care improved significantly compared to the control group that received massage. Pretty much all of the pain and disability scores they looked at were better in the chiropractic group.
The chiropractic patients also had fewer headaches and took less medication by the end of the study. The chiropractic patients in this study were actually over 3 times more likely to have a significant improvement in their headache symptoms compared to the patients receiving light massage. These studies suggest that chiropractic care may really help some people suffering from different types of headaches. So, if you experience headaches, why don’t you consider chiropractic care and make sure your spine is functioning well so you can operate at your best!
Migraines
A sad fact is that almost half of migraine sufferers don’t get the relief they need from usual drug treatment options. Commonly prescribed medications for migraines often can end up causing more headaches and more pain in the long run.
1 in 6 people around the world experience migraines on a regular basis
Healthcare Options
That is why researchers and health professionals have been exploring what other healthcare options may help people who suffer from migraines. One of these options that have received quite a lot of research attention is chiropractic care. We don’t know for sure who will respond well to chiropractic care, and we don’t know how much of an influence the placebo effect might have, but for some people, when they get under chiropractic care, their migraines almost completely resolve within just a couple of months.
Chiropractic and Migraines
Do you suffer from migraines? If you do, you will know how debilitating they can be. If you don’t, just imagine suffering with a throbbing headache for days on end, and feeling nauseous, and vomiting, and being unable to stand bright lights and loud noises. They really are awful!
For about 1 in 6 people around the world, they experience this on a regular basis, often many times each month.1 They are often severe and are considered by the World Health Organisation to be the most debilitating of all neurological disorders.1 Trying to carry on a normal life when you suffer from migraines can be really challenging. Caring for yourself, let alone a family, can be tough, and trying to work when all you want to do is hide in a dark quiet room can be impossible.
A sad fact is that almost half of sufferers don’t get the relief they need from usual drug treatment options.2 And to make matters worse, commonly prescribed medications for migraines can actually end up causing more headaches and more pain in the long run.2 This is a real problem!
That is why researchers and health professionals have been exploring what other healthcare options may help people who suffer from migraines. One of these options that have received quite a lot of research attention is chiropractic care. This may be because so many people with migraines see a chiropractor for help.2 Let’s take a look at what the research says about chiropractic care and migraines.
In 2019 a systematic review was published that looked at all of the clinical trials that had investigated whether chiropractic care can help people with migraines.2
What they found was that when all of the research is combined, people with migraines who saw a chiropractor or another health professional who provided spinal manipulation had fewer days with migraines each month. And they also experienced less migraine pain. That means that chiropractic care really does seem to help some people who suffer from migraines.
In one of the studies they were looking at, the researchers found that for about 1 in 5 people who suffer from migraines, their migraines almost went away completely after 2 months of chiropractic care!
We don’t know for sure who will respond well to chiropractic care, and we don’t know how much of an influence the placebo effect might have, but for some people, when they get under chiropractic care, their migraines almost completely resolve within just a couple of months.
So, if you suffer from them, or you know someone who does, consider chiropractic care, because it may really make a big difference to you or the people you care about. They don’t have to be a life sentence, so go and see a chiropractor and rediscover what life is supposed to be like.
Pain is Created in Your Brain
Your brain can decide for you that you should feel pain if it thinks there is a potential threat of tissue damage. This means that even if you have no actual tissue damage you can still experience pain.
Even with tissue damage, your brain may not create the feeling of pain
The Paradox of Pain
It means that the pain you feel does not always reflect the severity or even the location of your problem – if there is a problem at all. Science has shown beyond a doubt that pain is created in the brain. Our brains create for us the experience of pain to let us know that something is not ok.
Neural Plasticity
For some people pain can persist even after an initial injury has healed. For these people the pain has become non-informative and non-helpful. The pain itself has then become a problem. The brain has learnt to be in pain. The way the brain does this is very similar to the way the brain learns anything else. It’s called neural plasticity – or brain adaptations.
The Feeling of Pain
Did you know that scientists now know the feeling of pain is something your brain decides you should experience if it believes there is some tissue damage in your body? 1 In fact, your brain can decide that you should feel pain even if it only thinks there is a potential threat of damage! 2-5
It may seem strange, but it’s totally up to your brain to decide whether you should feel pain or not. Your brain may decide you should experience pain even if you have no actual tissue damage yet,6 or your brain may not create the feeling of pain for you when tissue damage has actually occurred! 7 8
This is called the “pain paradox”. It means that the pain you feel does not always reflect the severity or even the location of your problem – if there is a problem at all. Science has shown beyond a doubt that pain is created in your brain! 2 4 9 10
Sometimes pain can be very helpful and informative.1 Our brains create the experience of pain to let us know something is not ok.1 Maybe we are overexerting ourselves, or maybe we have had an injury that we need to be careful with to allow our body to heal. The pain can let us know what not to do while our body heals the problem.1 This pain is helpful and informative.1
If we listen to our body these pain experiences can be a good thing. But for some people, pain can persist even after the initial injury that caused it has healed.9 11 12 And for some people, the pain can spread to other areas that are not injured at all.6 For these people, the pain has become non-informative and non-helpful.9 11 12 The pain itself has become a problem. The brain has learnt to be in pain.9 11 12
The way the brain does this is very similar to the way the brain learns anything. It’s called neural plasticity – or brain adaptations.9 11 12 Brain scientists now know that what you focus on drives the way your brain will change.13-15 This can be a problem if you are focusing on your pain because it may make your pain worse. So, even if you’re in pain, try to focus on the good things in your life instead of your pain. Focus on what is working well. Focus on what makes you happy. This alone can help you!1
Brain scientists who have studied the effects of chiropractic spinal adjustments, have discovered that adjustments may change brain function.16
Chiropractic has a neuroplastic effect on the brain.16 In particular, adjustments change function in a part of your brain called the pre-frontal cortex.17 This part of your brain is actually the part of your brain that’s very involved in pain becoming chronic.8 18-21 This might be why getting chiropractic care early on when you have a problem has better long-term outcomes.22 It might also be that chiropractic care can prevent pain from becoming chronic.22
Neuroscientists believe that chiropractic care most likely helps reduce your feeling of pain by helping your brain ‘turn down’ or ‘switch off ’ the perception of pain in your brain.23 This means chiropractors may or may not adjust your spine exactly where you feel that it hurts. They are looking for parts of your spine and/or body where there is a lack of proper movement and they will adjust you there – so don’t worry if it’s not where you feel the pain.
Who sees a Chiropractor?
More and more people will see a chiropractor, but you may be surprised to know exactly why chiropractic care is becoming so much more popular. A recent study found that about 1 in 4 Americans have visited a chiropractor, and almost 20 million Americans see a chiropractor each year.
Chiropractic care helps improve your health and well-being
Why Chiropractic Care?
Although back and neck pain was the main specific health problem people gave for seeing a chiropractor, almost half of the chiropractic patients said they went for general wellness or disease prevention.
Benefits of Chiropractic Care
So why do so many people go to see a chiropractor?
It’s not just because they get a lot of help if they suffer from pain and other health problems. They go because they want to perform better on the sporting field or athletics track. They want to sleep better; they want to deal with stress better and to be better able to relax. They go because they want to improve their overall health and function at their best.
How often should you see your chiropractor?
When you first see your chiropractor, you may be among the many people who ask, “how often do I need to come?”. The answer that you may want to hear is once. But chiropractic care, like most things that are really good for us, rarely makes a long-term difference to your health and wellness after just one visit.
Seeing your chiropractor can be a little like going to the gym. It takes time, frequency and follow up to retrain the spine to function well.
Maintenance Care
One reason for having to see a chiropractor regularly is because it usually takes years for the problem to develop which motivates someone to first see a chiropractor and it can take many visits to the chiropractor to correct that problem.
Care Plans
When you go and see your chiropractor know that their recommendations for your plan of care are based on what their clinical experience tells them is best for you and that the research suggests more frequent adjustments have the biggest positive impact on your health and wellness.
Visiting a chiropractor
When you first see your chiropractor, you may be among the many people who ask, ‘how often do I need to come?’ Often the answer people want to hear is ‘once’ but chiropractic care, like most things that are really good for us, rarely makes a longterm difference to your health and wellness after just one visit.
One reason a single visit to your chiropractor may not make a long-term change is that it usually takes years for the problem to develop that motivates someone to first see a chiropractor and it can take many visits to the chiropractor to correct that problem.
Seeing your chiropractor can be a little like going to the gym. It takes time, frequency and follow up.
One way of looking at it is that it can be like the thousandth straw that breaks the camel’s back. A problem can build up day after day as you sit hunched over your desk, or bend and twist as you lift, or tense up as you deal with your daily stress and then one day, you bend to tie your shoelaces and all of a sudden something hurts! You can rest assured that tying your shoelaces isn’t what caused the problem, it’s simply the thousandth straw that broke the camel’s back (or was too much for your back) and that’s why you’re in pain.
There will usually be changes to the way the supporting muscles in your spine work that build up over time until your muscles can’t cope anymore and symptoms appear.1-2 So, seeing your chiropractor can be a little like going to the gym. It takes time, frequency, and follow up. Working with you to correct the problem and help your brain and the muscles in your spine communicate or ‘talk’ with each other again so you can regain the stability you need to function properly and resolve your aches and pains.3
But how long will this take and how often do you need to be checked by your chiropractor? Everybody is different, so your chiropractor will be guided by their clinical experience, and what your goals are when they recommend a care plan for you.
US Research Study
A new research study was recently published that suggests, in the early stages of chiropractic care, the more often you get adjusted, the better the results you enjoy, and this can also be better for you in the long term as well.4
In this study, that was conducted by scientists in America, they looked at 256 people who had chronic, regular headaches and divided them into groups who either received chiropractic care once a week, or twice a week, or three times a week, for up to six weeks, or they received no chiropractic care at all and instead were given light massages over the same 6-week period. Previous studies have shown that people with this kind of headache often respond well to chiropractic care.
The scientists in this study were most interested in how many visits per week to the chiropractor showed the best results. They looked at how many days a week a patient suffered from headaches at the end of the study and whether any changes in headache frequency between the groups were still there up to one year later. What they found was that the patients who were seen by their chiropractor most regularly, so up to three times a week, had fewer headaches than those who were seen once or twice a week, and they were much better than the patients who received no chiropractic care at all.
In fact, after one year, the patients that had been seen three times a week had over three fewer headaches per month compared to the patients who only received a light massage. So, these effects obviously lasted.
The more you get adjusted, the better the results that you will enjoy.
This study was done in people with chronic headaches, so we can’t be sure if the same differences occur in people with other problems who see a chiropractor. A similar study in patients with chronic low back pain did find that people who were adjusted more often had the best results, but the results weren’t as clear as the study done on patients with headaches.5
The studies suggest that seeing a chiropractor more often when you begin care has real, beneficial, long-term effects to the way your spine and nervous system works, but how much you benefit may depend on what’s wrong with your spine when you begin care.
So, when you go and see your chiropractor, know that their recommendations for your plan of care are based on what their clinical experience tells them is best for you, and that the research suggests more frequent adjustments has the biggest positive impact on your health and wellness.
