Dear A Moment of Science,

 

　　I like to exercise, but I suffer from migraines and worry that getting my sweat on at the gym could trigger a headache. Am I right to be cautious?

 

　　Good question.

 

　　For some people, exercise can in fact lead to a migraine. But most studies have shown that, on average, exercise may actually help ward off migraines. At the very least, exercise doesn’t seem to hurt most migraine sufferers.

 

　　Right,one study done in Sweden put more than ninety migraine prone folks into three groups: one that exercised for around forty minutes three times a week, another that was given a drug to prevent migraines, and a third had regular relaxation sessions. After three months, and then an additional six months of follow up, the study found that migraines were reduced for people in all three groups.

 

　　Another, smaller study examined more than twenty-five migraine sufferers before, during, and after working out on stationary bikes. After three months, the subjects all experienced fewer headaches.

 

　　So at least according to these studies, exercise appears to be a viable alternative to migraine drugs. To be clear, though, this doesn’t mean that working out never triggers migraines.

 

　　Especially if you don’t exercise regularly, it’s probably best to ease into it and see how your head reacts. If working up a sweat doesn’t appear to trigger a headache, then you can gradually build up to higher intensity workouts.

 

　　运动会引发头痛吗？

 

　　亲爱的科学一刻：

 

　　我喜欢运动，但我患有偏头痛，担心去健身房运动到出汗会引发头痛。我应该这么谨慎吗？

 

　　问得好。

 

　　对一些人来说，运动其实能导致偏头痛。但绝大多数研究显示，一般而言，运动可能实际上能帮你远离偏头痛。至少可以肯定，运动并不会对大多数偏头痛患者造成损害。

 

　　正好，瑞典有一项研究将90名患有偏头痛的人分成3组：一组一周进行3次约40分钟的运动；另一组服用药物来防止偏头痛；第三组则进行定时放松活动。3个月后的研究结果及另外6个月的跟踪调查显示，3组人的偏头痛都有所缓解。

 

　　另一项规模较小的研究对25名偏头痛患者在健身车上运动前、运动中和运动后的情况进行了调查。3个月后，所有的研究对象发生偏头痛的次数都更少了。

 

　　因此，至少就这些研究结论来说，用运动来代替服用偏头痛药物似乎是可行的。尽管如此，需要明确的是，这并不意味着锻炼不会引发偏头痛。

 

　　尤其当你不经常运动时，最好是循序渐进地进行运动，并看看你头部的反应。如果运动到出汗并未引发头痛，你就可以逐步进行更大强度的锻炼。