Some scientists believe that fatigue, glaring or flickering lights, the weather, and certain foods may trigger migraine headaches. Not all headaches require medical attention. Some result from missed meals or occasional muscle tension and are easily remedied. If the problem is not relieved by standard treatments, a headache sufferer may be referred to an internist, a neurologist, or a psychologist. Drug therapy, biofeedback training, stress reduction, and elimination of certain foods from the diet are the most common methods of preventing and controlling migraine and other vascular headaches.
Regular exercise can also reduce the frequency and severity of migraine headaches.
Temporary relief can sometimes be obtained by using cold pack or by pressing on the bulging artery found in front of the ear on the painful side of the head. About 90 percent of chronic headache patients can be helped. One theory of headaches is that people who suffer from severe headache and other types of chronic pain have lower levels of endorphins than people who are generally pain free. Thermography is an experimental technique for diagnosing headache. In thermography, an infrared camera converts skin temperature into a color picture, or thermogram, with different degrees of heat appearing as different colors.