Throughout the years since its conception, weight loss surgery has been proven to do more than just make you lose weight. The benefits of bariatric surgery are ample: weight loss, improvement of heart health, regulating blood pressure, lowering cancer risks, preventing or stopping diabetes, etc.
In addition to all of these benefits, researchers have found that weight loss surgery reduces migraine.
What is migraine?
A person who has migraine will experience episodes of severe headaches that can cause nausea and vomiting. Migraine attacks can last for a long time and be so painful that the patient will not be able to work normally.
Migraine can be worsened by many factors. In this article, we will mention the factors related to obesity.
Obesity and migraine
Sleep apnea, thyroid disorders, stress, and depression can increase migraine attacks. People with a normal BMI who have migraine have a 3% chance of the condition worsening and becoming chronic, while obese people with migraine have a 9% chance of developing chronic migraine.
Studies have shown that migraine patients also have higher levels of insulin and cholesterol, which is often associated with obesity and unhealthy eating habits.
Studies have also shown that fat cells produce and discharge certain hormones that cause pain, and that these same hormones were observed during a migraine attack. This leads obese migraine patients to experience more headaches.
To support these claims, a 2011 study followed 24 severely obese migraine patients before and after weight loss surgery. They were given questionnaires before and after and were asked to report the frequency of headaches before having weight loss surgery versus six months after the surgery. The reports concluded that there was significant reduction in the frequency and severity of headaches, no less than 50% reduction.
