Alcohol and Headaches: Why They Happen and What You Can Do

Remember, your health and well-being should always be a top priority. Drinking can lead to dehydration, which in turn often causes headaches. When you consume alcohol, your body is compelled to increase its urine production. The imbalance of fluids and electrolytes in your system can trigger the onset of a headache. By disrupting your body’s hydration status, alcohol also alters the balance of important chemicals called neurotransmitters within your brain.

Treatment options vary, from acute treatment to relieve symptoms to preventive treatment to reduce the number of attacks you experience. There are also behavioral treatment options and lifestyle changes that can help. A reduction or elimination in alcohol intake would naturally reduce the risk and occurrence of alcohol-induced headaches. As such, dark coloured drinks may lead to increased likelihood of hangover headaches for some [23].

Understanding Alcohol Induced Headaches

Brandy, red wine, and rum have the highest levels of congeners, while gin and vodka contain fewer of these chemicals. However, a 2019 study found higher rates of vodka consumption among drinkers with frequent migraine attacks. The response to alcohol varies from person to person, and there is no alcohol that absolutely will not cause a migraine or other headache. Alcohol can trigger headaches, including migraines, cluster headaches, and tension-type headaches. In fact, around 30 percent of people who experience recurrent migraines report alcohol as a trigger. The type of alcohol does not seem to affect whether a person gets a headache.

But if you’re drinking faster than your liver can process the alcohol, acetaldehyde builds up in your bloodstream and triggers headache symptoms. Or you might be fine until after your blood alcohol level returns to normal. This type of headache can happen to anyone, but people with migraines are more likely to get one. It can happen even if you drink less than people who don’t get migraine headaches. According to the Headache Classification Committee, the types of headaches typically caused by drinking alcohol are migraines, tension-type headaches, or cluster headaches [2].

Alcohol-induced headaches: Evidence for a central mechanism?

These headaches are often described as a dull, throbbing sensation and are more commonly experienced by individuals who have consumed larger amounts of alcohol or are more prone to hangovers. Dehydration, changes in blood flow, and the accumulation of alcohol’s metabolic byproducts are believed to contribute to the development of delayed alcohol-induced headaches. Tension headaches are the most common type of headache and are often caused by muscle tension and stress. While some studies suggest a link between alcohol consumption and an increase in tension headaches, contradicting research claims that drinking beer could actually reduce pain and improve headache symptoms. More research is needed to fully understand the relationship between alcohol and tension headaches.

You can find additional support from people in your position and those who have already experienced pregnancy with migraine in our Move Against Migraine Facebook group. It will be crucial to have access to reliable resources on migraine as you work to manage this disease. The American Migraine Foundation offers extensive resources to help you explore your symptoms and treatment options. Laura Morris is an experienced clinical practitioner and CQC Registered Manager with over twenty years experience, over ten of which have been as an Independent Nurse Prescriber. She has held a number of senior leadership roles in the substance use and mental health sector in the NHS, the prison service and in leading social enterprises in the field. If you are suffering from an alcohol-induced headaches, you can learn more about the connection and find helpful remedies in our guide on How to Alleviate Hangover Symptoms.

Is alcohol or another component of the drink the trigger?

Although genetic factors influence the risk of having migraine, environmental triggers can cause episodes or increase their frequency. Some people only sip a glass or two of wine before their head starts to throb. You might have heard that red wine is most likely to cause problems. But other drinks like sparkling wine, beer, and hard liquor may be just as likely, if not more, to cause problems. No matter what you call it—a headache journal, migraine diary, headache tracker—keeping track of your symptoms can be a versatile tool to help better manage your health. It can help you identify patterns over time and help your doctor identify if you are experiencing migraine.

It may also trigger headaches related to headache disorders, such as migraine. Migraine causes a specific type of headache that involves neurological symptoms such as light sensitivity and aura. Other types of headaches, including severe headaches, can occur as a result of alcohol consumption. If you’ve identified alcohol as a trigger for your migraine headaches, avoiding it altogether is probably best. The same is true if you find that some types of alcohol trigger your migraine headaches more than others.

In a 2007 study, Austrian researchers examined a number of factors related to migraine, specifically considering consumption of alcohol and other nutritional factors the day before the onset of a headache. They found limited importance of nutrition, including can alcohol cause migraines alcohol intake, in the triggering of migraine. In fact, many headache sufferers abstain from alcohol or consume less than the general population. It has been suggested that a tendency to experience alcohol-induced headaches could be genetic.

If a headache persists or worsens, visit a doctor for an examination and treatment recommendations. However, the research suggests that alcohol may not be the only trigger and may also depend on other factors. Other criteria for a person to have a migraine diagnosis include nausea or vomiting and sensitivity to light or noise. Individuals with lower body weights cannot process as much alcohol as individuals at higher weights. Don’t be overly critical of yourself, but look for small changes that can have huge impacts on your headaches.

People who suffer from migraine are more prone to these reactions — even after drinking less alcohol than people who don’t get migraine headaches. Keep a record of any symptoms that occur after consuming alcohol and discuss them with your doctor. Identifying your specific food and drink triggers is a key part of any migraine prevention and treatment plan. Average consumption of more than two to three alcoholic drinks daily can lead to multiple health issues, and contribute to the occurrence of alcohol-induced headaches. One person may have several bottles of beer, or glasses of white wine, and not have a headache, while another may have only a small amount of red wine and experience headache symptoms.

• In other words, the best treatment for a cocktail headache is actually preventing one in the first place.
• When blood vessels expand, they stimulate specific brain nerves which results in headache [16].
• If it does, you’ll need to drink less or stay away from all alcohol.
• Tannin, a component in red wine, has been long considered the culprit.