Abdominal migraines belong to the family of migraines, but are different from the usual migraine headache because there is no headache involved. Instead the pain is in the abdomen and it is often very severe. Abdominal migraines can affect kids and has an incidence of 2 to 4 % in them. Most people are not aware of this condition so it can be a surprise when they have a child that experiences it. The following is a list of known causes of these migraines and how you are able to prevent them from happening in the future.

5 Causes Of Abdominal Migraines And How To Prevent Them

• The usual symptoms are acute attacks of colicky pain in abdomen, followed by vomiting.
• There may be nausea preceding the vomiting.
• The abdominal pain can be described as being moderate to severe.
• The child may have slight pallor of the skin
• Child refuses to eat any food
• The abdominal pain is almost always felt over the midline area
• The abdominal pain can persist for hours together or in some cases can extend to more than a day at a time.

Causes of Abdominal Migraines

1. The actual cause behind any kind of migraine is considered to be alteration in the balance between levels of serotonin and histamine.
2. Abdominal migraines may also be triggered by consuming certain food stuffs like for instance chocolates, Chinese cuisine or meats that have been processed.
3. Some kids may have a habit of swallowing air, which is called as aerophagia. Aerophagia can be one of the triggers for abdominal migraines.
4. Psychological issues can also be one of the causes.
5. Genetic history seems to play a very important part, because children who suffer from abdominal migraines may have blood relatives suffering from migraines

How are Abdominal Migraines different from Migraine Headache?

• Abdominal migraines are never accompanied or preceded by any aura, which is a common factor with migraine attack.
• There is no disturbance of vision or flashes of light before the eyes or ringing in the ears in abdominal migraines.

Treatment of Abdominal Migraines

• Some doctors prefer to treat them like migraine headache.
• Serotonin blockers and tricyclic anti-depressants are often prescribed
• Other drugs that are used are valproic acid and sumatriptan

Can Abdominal Migraines Be Prevented?

• Prevention is possible only if you can pin point the trigger foods or circumstances.
• Once you know for sure about the triggers, avoid them
• Since stress is an important factor that triggers the pain, take measures to relax. Meditation and relaxation techniques are useful and can be easily done by children too.
• Adopting a healthy lifestyle is very important, and avoiding consumption of unhealthy diets like fast food or Chinese food that contains MSG is an effective measure.

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