Can alcohol cause migraines?

Pregnancy can add another complicated layer to your migraine journey, but having a strong support system will make it easier to navigate the ups and downs. You can find additional support from people in your position and those who have already experienced pregnancy with migraine in our Move Against Migraine Facebook group. Reviewed for accuracy by the American Migraine Foundation’s subject matter experts, headache specialists and medical advisers with deep knowledge and training in headache medicine. Once it gets into your system, it is converted into a chemical that triggers migraine.

• Variable alcohol intake had 10.6% missing values on day‐1 and 11.6% on day‐2; migraine on day‐2 was missing in 7.4%.
• Try to stick to just a glass or two and eat enough for the food to soak up some of that alcohol.
• Tension headaches are the most common headaches, often triggered by emotional stress.
• The loud environments, irregular eating schedules, and lack of sleep can all contribute to triggering your migraine.

Migraine Hangover

Alcohol hangover is a poorly understood cluster of symptoms occurring following a heavy consumption of alcohol. The term “delayed alcohol-induced headache” is often used synonymously. Our objective was to compare alcohol hangover symptoms in migraine sufferers and nonsufferers. Distribution of daily alcoholic beverages consumption (total daily quantity and by type of alcoholic drink), for all person‐days, within‐person means, and within‐person SDs. If you experience a migraine, it can feel like the worst headache of your life. When the head pain goes away, you might not be in the clear just yet.

When alcohol is a trigger for one’s usual primary headaches, the pain usually occurs within three hours of alcohol consumption. It is also important to have open discussions about your alcohol consumption with your health care team. Your team will be able to alert you of any potential interactions between your migraine medications and alcohol, and they can help ensure you are approaching alcohol consumption safely.

For example, wine may be a trigger for some but whiskey may not have an influence. However, if you still experience a migraine attack after drinking any kind of alcohol, the best solution is to avoid alcohol altogether. If you notice consistent patterns, then chances are it’s the alcohol that’s causing your migraine headache. You may try avoiding those drinks in migraine after drinking the future to prevent migraine attacks. To prevent an alcohol-related migraine headache, try sipping your drink slowly or avoiding triggers. A small 2014 study noted that 13% of participants said their migraine symptoms were sensitive to weather changes.

The American Migraine Foundation has created a Migraine Advocacy Hub, a central location for migraine advocacy resources and opportunities to connect with others to mobilize against migraine in your community. The content on this website is provided for educational purposes only. While it is doctor-verified, it is not intended to serve as medical advice, and users are advised to seek the advice of their doctors before making any decisions based on the information in this article.

One or two drinks with food and water over time might be safe for you, but three or more will produce a hangover headache for many people. Mocktails are easier to find these days; you can always lean on them. However, a 2019 study found higher rates of vodka consumption among drinkers with frequent migraine attacks. The response to alcohol varies from person to person, and there is no alcohol that absolutely will not cause a migraine or other headache. Most studies point to red wine as a common headache culprit, particularly in people with migraine. These individuals commonly cite wine, especially red wine, as a migraine trigger.

What Everyone with Migraines Should Know About Alcohol

• There is even some debate about whether alcohol itself or another chemical component in alcoholic drinks acts as the trigger.
• Unfortunately, this may lead to inflammation throughout the body, which can trigger migraines in some people.
• However, researchers aren’t clear on exactly how or why alcohol can impact migraine.
• People who cannot stop drinking should talk with a doctor about treatment for alcohol use disorder, which is a serious but treatable condition.
• A 2015 study suggests that the inactivity of alcohol dehydrogenase 2, an enzyme that helps break down alcohol, might contribute to hangover headaches.

People who experienced migraine with alcohol were more likely to have migraine with aura and to experience more migraine days and more frequent attacks. A 2019 study surveyed people with migraine who drank alcohol. Of the 1,547 participants, 783 said that alcohol was a trigger, and 195 were not sure.

Sensitivity to specific ingredients in alcohol

In addition to red wine, other alcoholic beverages, including beer, white wine, and liqueur, have also been reported as headache triggers. According to the American Migraine Foundation, internationally, about 10 percent of people with migraine report a frequent link between alcohol and headaches. In some parts of the world, that number drops to as low as 1.4 percent. One study found that alcohol contributes to migraine attacks in up to one-third of people diagnosed with the condition. Even people who are not prone to headaches will get a headache after a night of heavy alcohol consumption.

How is a migraine hangover treated?

Only a few clinical trials have studied treatment for hangover symptoms. Future studies using specific antimigraine drugs such as triptans, may show efficacy in controlling at least part of the hangover symptoms cluster. Variable alcohol intake had 10.6% missing values on day‐1 and 11.6% on day‐2; migraine on day‐2 was missing in 7.4%. Same‐day alcohol intake (Yes/No), and quantity of each type of alcoholic drink had 4.7% missing values. The majority were female (419/487, 86.0%), actively working (293/378, 77.5%). Most of the females had regular menstrual cycles (247/419, 58.9%).

Learn more about why alcohol disrupts your sleep from our partner network Everyday Health. Don’t blame yourself if you wake up with a migraine attack or a hangover headache. It’s not always what you drank the night before that triggered that morning migraine. As dehydration can cause headaches, staying hydrated when consuming alcohol is key. Aim to drink plenty of water before, after, and during alcohol consumption.

For people who do not have migraine, the worst “headache” they ever experience may be the one that accompanies their hangover after a night of heavy drinking. A migraine hangover is much more complicated—it is a distinct phase in a migraine attack that begins once peak head pain dissipates. Whether alcohol acts as a trigger is really a case-by-case basis for people with migraine. For some people, it could be the amount of alcohol consumed that triggers an attack.

However, knowing the effects alcohol may have on your body and migraine attacks could help you make up your mind. Research shows that people with migraine may also experience related symptoms during a hangover. Reducing or eliminating alcohol may reduce the frequency of migraine attacks. It may also help eliminate triggers that tend to co-occur with drinking, such as dehydration and sleep deprivation. If you love drinking beer, but regular migraine attacks or headaches are a fact of your life, it’s worth weighing the pros and cons. Analyze your personal risk carefully, remembering that triggers are often additive.

While a hangover headache can happen to anyone (usually the morning after drinking too much alcohol), people who experience migraines are more susceptible. Does alcohol seem to affect your migraine attacks and symptoms? Do you think you might react to certain alcoholic beverages more than others? Share your thoughts in the comments below, or start a discussion on MyMigraineTeam. Some people may feel that they can’t control their drinking, have negative feelings when they don’t drink, or generally feel that their alcohol consumption is negatively impacting their life.

People prone to headaches may be at a higher risk of experiencing alcohol-related headaches. Avoiding drinking is the best way to prevent an alcohol-related headache. Males should aim to drink two or fewer drinks daily, and females should aim to drink one or fewer. The alcohol in the blood increases more quickly with liquor than with beer.

Andrew Charles, MD, director of the Goldberg Migraine Program at the University of California, Los Angeles, says the focus on migraine triggers is a double-edged sword for some patients. “It’s certainly reasonable to take control as much as you can. But many patients, if they have an attack, it turns into some sort of blame. They’re basically blaming themselves for something that they have done to bring the attack on,” he says. Certain additives can increase the chance of developing a headache after drinking.