Show 1055: What Are the Best Treatments for Headaches?
The People's Pharmacy
Joe and Terry Graedon
4.6 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 20 October 2016
⏱️ 58 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Do you know how to treat a headache, beyond taking aspirin or acetaminophen? Can you get into trouble by taking your medication too frequently? (The answer is yes; this can make headaches worse.)
Ways to Treat Serious Headaches:
Cluster Headaches:
Cluster headaches recur with such extreme pain that they are sometimes termed “suicide headaches.” There are effective treatments, including oxygen, but first the patient must get the proper diagnosis. Some people benefit from taking a daily medication to prevent this type of pain.
Migraine Headaches:
Migraines are triggered by odors, changes in weather, stress, certain foods and alterations in the menstrual cycle. They occur primarily in people who have a genetic susceptibility to migraine. Once a migraine starts, the blood vessels in the brain become leaky and inflammation sets in. The resulting pain may last between 4 and 72 hours. It may be accompanied by nausea and/or vomiting, as well as sensitivity to light or sound.
People susceptible to migraines often benefit by keeping a diary so they can figure out their own triggers and avoid them. Supplements such as magnesium and Coenzyme Q10 may be helpful for prevention.
Sex Headaches:
Sometimes excruciating head pain strikes at just the wrong time. How should such sex headaches be evaluated? What is the most effective treatment?
Learn about the latest drugs and nondrug approaches to managing recurrent head pain and migraines.
This Week’s Guest:
Jennifer S. Kriegler, MD, is director of the Headache Medicine Fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic. She is part of the Center for Neurological Restoration and the Headache Section of the Neurological Institute in the Department of Neurology of the Cleveland Clinic.
Listen to the Podcast:
The podcast of this program will be available the Monday after the broadcast date. The show can be streamed online from this site and podcasts can be downloaded for free for four weeks after the date of broadcast. After that time has passed, digital downloads are available for $2.99. CDs may be purchased at any time after broadcast for $9.99.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hi, I'm Joe Graydon. |
| 0:02.3 | I'm Terry Graydon. |
| 0:03.8 | Welcome to this podcast of the People's Pharmacy, where we bring you the stories behind the health headlines. |
| 0:10.2 | This podcast is brought to you by Redux Industries, makers of utterly smooth body cream. |
| 0:16.0 | 800-345-7339 on the web at utter cream.com. I'm I'm I'm |
| 0:38.3 | I'm |
| 0:39.3 | I'm M. M. M. |
| 0:55.0 | M. |
| 0:56.0 | I'm |
| 0:57.0 | know In the people's In the people's pharmacy health headlines, caffeine may be okay even for people with heart failure. |
| 1:37.1 | For years, cardiologists have warned their heart patients to avoid caffeine. |
| 1:41.5 | That's because they worried that caffeine would trigger irregular heart rhythms. |
| 1:46.3 | A new randomized placebo-controlled study has found that this is unlikely. The researchers |
| 1:51.8 | included 51 patients with chronic heart failure and gave them five doses of caffeine or placebo |
| 1:58.3 | over the course of five hours. This resulted in a total dose of 500 milligrams of caffeine, or zero milligrams of caffeine |
| 2:06.3 | for those who got the placebo. |
| 2:08.3 | After a week of washout, the exercise was repeated. |
| 2:12.3 | Patients who had gotten placebo were giving caffeine and vice versa. |
| 2:16.2 | During both sessions, patients had continuous |
| 2:18.7 | electrocardiographic monitoring. There were no significant differences between the groups |
| 2:24.2 | with respect to any type of arrhythmia. The exercise stress tests also revealed no differences. |
| 2:31.0 | Based on these results, the investigators conclude, to date, there's no solid evidence to support the common recommendation to limit moderate caffeine consumption in patients at risk for arrhythmias. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Joe and Terry Graedon, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Joe and Terry Graedon and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.