Migraines and weight

February 3, 2009

Both overweight and underweight people are more likely to have migraine headaches, according to a recent study published in journal Cephalalgia. Being overweight has been shown to increase the risk of chronic migraines in a previous large study, but the discovery of the link between being too thin and migraines is new. These findings do not mean that regaining normal weight will lead to improvement in headaches, but only that there is an association. This is not to say that we do not encourage our overweight patients to lose weight. The best way to achieve this is not only by dieting, but also by engaging in frequent aerobic exercise, which has been found to be associated with fewer migraine headaches.

Written by
Alexander Mauskop, MD
Continue reading
August 8, 2026
Sugar is bad for your brain, even before you are born.
Sugar consumed in the first two years of life increases the risk of dementia.
Read article
August 6, 2026
Research
An Old Medicine that Could Make Brain Stimulation Work Better for Depression and Other Neurological Conditions
A 2022 clinical trial from the University of Calgary found that adding low‑dose D‑cycloserine (DCS), a partial NMDA‑receptor agonist, to intermittent theta‑burst stimulation (iTBS) significantly increased response and remission rates in depression without serious side effects. Early follow‑up data suggest that timing, dose, and drug levels matter, and raise the possibility that this DCS‑TMS approach could eventually be applied to other neurological conditions—such as migraine, postconcussion syndrome, brain fog, and long COVID
Read article
Insights from Dr. Alexander Mauskop on headaches and migraines
Subscribe to the Blog.
Subscribe
Subscribe