Retained Toxins Are the Major Cause of Headaches

The standard theory that tension headaches are caused by widening of the
blood vessels and migraines are caused by constriction of the blood vessels has
been disproven in recent investigations.
The evidence now illustrates the similarities between migraine and other types of headaches rather than the differences. The major cause of both tension headaches and migraines is the
retention of toxins or tissue irritants within the central nervous system. These
chemical irritants may cause an oversensitivity of nerve tissues to other stimuli.

It has also been shown that tissue waste, such as nitric oxide and other
irritating chemicals, can be released from both the nerves and blood vessels in
the central nervous system.
These recent findings illustrate the biochemical
players associated with detoxification in the central nervous system.
Withdrawal from toxins either taken orally or self-produced within the body is a
form of detoxification. This merely means the body is actively engaged in an
effort to lower the levels of waste retained in our cells. Sometimes this release
of waste from cells can be painful; nevertheless, it has a positive benefit to the
body. Our cells and the tissues they comprise must continually strive to
maintain their purity to prevent early cellular degeneration and premature cell
death.

One clue to understanding severe headaches is the fact that migraine
sufferers are more sensitive to drugs including hallucinogenic agents than
people who do not suffer from migraines.
This suggests a difference between sufferers and nonsufferers in the blood—brain barrier, or the sensitivity of the brain's surrounding membranes to toxins.

The biochemical mediators causing the pain in so-called tension headache are
actually closely related to the causative factors in migraine. Rather than saying
that tension headaches and migraines are caused by differing mechanisms, it
would be more accurate to see them on a pain and symptom continuum
differing only in severity of symptoms and sensitivity of the individual to toxic
stimuli and pain-modulation neurotransmitters. The additional symptoms in the
migraine such as nausea, visual auras, and dizziness occur simply because the
headache is more severe.

For more than 30 years, tension headaches were simplistically believed to be
caused by muscle contraction. Now we believe that muscle tension is the
response to the pain and not the cause of the headache. Similarly, in migraine,
dilation and constriction of the blood vessels follow the onset of pain and do not
cause it.

The tension type or muscle-contraction headache is generally less severe
than a migraine. It is experienced when the individual is under stress, in
contrast to the migraine, which is usually experienced after stressful periods
have ended and the body attempts to repair and detoxify. We need not concern
ourselves with the minute biochemical differences between migraine-type and
so-called tension or muscle-contraction headaches because the biochemical
mechanism causing the pain is similar for each, and the treatment described in
this chapter is equally effective for both.

The pain of a migraine almost always occurs in the front of the head and is
centered on an eye. It is typically accompanied by visual and gastrointestinal
disturbances. Essentially, migraines are severe pulsating, or throbbing,
headaches, associated with nausea or photophobia.

Many factors may trigger or aggravate an attack of migraine. A common
aggravating factor is physical activity. Other common precipitating factors
include menstruation, alcohol consumption (especially red wine), too little or
too much sleep, a missed meal, or a change in the weather. Certain foods can
also trigger migraine in many patients (dietary recommendations will be
discussed later).