There has been a flurry of news releases recently announcing new migraine headache medications. It looks like great news, but we feel a responsibility to offer information necessary for our patients to make informed decisions about their health care.

It has been said, "Today's 'miracle cure' is tomorrow's TV expose'." To quote the past president of Northwestern Medical School, Robert S. Mendelsohn, M.D., "If you rush to take it (a new drug), do so with the full knowledge that you are being a guinea pig. The longer a drug is on the market, the more will be known about the side effects." A sobering message for anyone treating a condition with medication. We encourage our patients to evaluate the logic of seeking only "temporary relief" of migraine headaches.

The controversy surrounding migraines, and "basic" headaches, does not only involve treatment. There are unanswered questions about the causes of migraines. In chiropractic, we seek out and treat the causes of our patients' conditions.

The brain itself has no pain receptor nerves, as evidenced that during brain surgery, patients doe not feel the probing of brain tissue. The surrounding protective tissue, the blood vessels and cranial nerves all react with pain. Inflammation can occur in these areas, also. Information gleaned from many sources point to the theory that migraines result from vascular problems. What has been theorized is that through stress, chemical imbalance, or allergic reaction, blood vessels within the head become dilated. This dilation is responsible for the sometimes blinding pain of migraines.

The bottom line is that if migraines are vascular, or blood vessel related, if the pain is caused by inflammation or chemical imbalance, the answer is the same. The way to make sure that the blood vessels receive proper innervation, the way to help the body remove the toxins associated with inflammation and to recreate healthy chemical balance in the body is to help the nervous system to work at 100%. The brain and nerve system control all structure and function in the body. Maximizing health begins with optimum nerve supply. While questions remain about how to "treat" migraines, many are gaining "long term relief" through chiropractic by correcting nerve interferences. Chiropractic addresses the cause of migraines when the cause is the vertebral subluxation complex.

Would it not make infinitely more sense to address the cause and quit waiting for the next advertised "miracle cure?" The developer of chiropractic, Dr. B. J. Palmer said over 70 years ago, "All the drugs in the world cannot adjust a subluxated vertebra." It was true then and it is true now. The next step is to find out if your migraines are caused by vertebral subluxation complex by having us check your spine. Don't' continue being a "guinea pig" looking for "temporary relief" Call us for an appointment.