Irritable bowel syndrome and headaches.. Is there a relationship between them?

Mark
Written By Mark

If you suffer from headaches, especially migraine attacks, you know that they are often accompanied by digestive disturbances such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and loss of appetite.

But is the opposite true? For example, does having irritable bowel syndrome give you headaches? Some researchers believe it does, due to the close connection between the gut and the brain.

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Between irritable bowel syndrome and headache

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common condition that affects the digestive system, causing symptoms such as stomach cramps, bloating, diarrhea, and constipation. These symptoms tend to come and go over time, and can last for days, weeks, or months at a time.

A 2020 study published in the journal Medicine found that people with IBS had a 44% chance of developing headaches, while those without IBS had a lower chance of developing headaches, at only 23%.

Migraine and tension headache

A 2016 study published in the journal Neurology found that about 22% of people with IBS have tension headaches, but more than 35% have migraines. This suggests that migraines are more common in people with IBS than tension headaches.

This is why much of the research into IBS and headaches focuses on migraines.

Tension headaches differ from migraines in that they are caused by stress and muscle tension, and cause constant pain on both sides of the head rather than throbbing pain, which is the most common type of headache. Tension headaches can be chronic, but they are not accompanied by the common symptoms of gastrointestinal disorders.

Migraine is a neurological condition that causes throbbing pain, usually on one side of the head, preceded or accompanied by an attack of pain called an “aura” that lasts for hours or days, and may get worse if the person becomes more active. This type of headache can also cause nausea and vomiting, as well as sensitivity to light, sounds and smells.

Irritable bowel syndrome and migraine

One of the largest studies on migraine and irritable bowel syndrome, published in 2006 in the journal BMC Gastroenterol, found that people with IBS were 1.5 times more likely to have migraines than those without the syndrome.

People with migraines also have a twice as high risk of developing irritable bowel syndrome as people who don’t have migraines, according to a study published in the European Journal of Neurology.

Doctors and researchers have not completely confirmed the reason for the strong link between irritable bowel syndrome and migraines, but there are some reasons that can increase the likelihood of developing both conditions and thus may be the cause of both, including:

  • Genetics:

Migraine shares some genetic components with irritable bowel syndrome. The aforementioned study, conducted in 2016, revealed many genetic similarities between the two conditions, indicating similar physiological origins between these conditions. The study found that participants with irritable bowel syndrome and headache disorder had at least one gene that differed from the genes of the group that did not suffer from these conditions.

  • Pain sensitivity:

IBS and migraine are sometimes classified as chronic pain conditions that may involve increased pain sensitivity in the gut and brain. Scientists have observed hypersensitivity of the enteric nervous system in patients with IBS. The enteric nervous system is the neural network that regulates and controls the functions of the digestive system. At the same time, hypersensitivity of pain pathways in the brain is often considered a causative factor for migraine, leading some researchers to suggest that people with IBS and migraine are more sensitive to stimuli in general.

  • Hormones:

Studies suggest that IBS and migraines are more common in women, so there’s good reason to believe that hormones, such as estrogen, may be partly responsible for causing the gut and brain disorders. There’s also a type of migraine called menstrual migraine, which causes symptoms just before or during menstruation, and changes in estrogen levels are often linked to migraines during the menstrual cycle.

  • Serotonin:

Some researchers at the Canadian Society for Gastrointestinal Research believe that the connection between the gut and the brain in the body may be responsible for IBS and migraines, and they have identified low levels of serotonin in the gut in particular as a possible factor.

How do you manage migraines and irritable bowel syndrome?

  • Keep a food diary for migraines and IBS

If you’ve been diagnosed with migraines or IBS, your doctor will likely ask you to keep a food diary, which is a daily record of everything you eat and drink. This is because certain foods can trigger IBS or migraine symptoms. Knowing which foods to avoid with IBS and migraines can reduce the number of attacks you experience.

  • Treat migraines and irritable bowel syndrome at the same time

Some medications can be used to treat both conditions, so treating migraines and IBS may involve coordinating care among different health care providers.