Caffeine Causes and Cures Headaches

A cup of coffee. CREDIT: stock.xchng

Norwegian scientists' large, cross-sectional study of more than 50,000 people has found that caffeine seems to both cause and prevent hurting heads.

In a study published in the Journal of Headache Pain, scientists at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway, concluded that people who consume high amounts of caffeine each day are more likely to suffer occasional headaches than those with low caffeine consumption. 

However, they also found that low caffeine consumption was associated with a "greater likelihood of chronic headaches, defined as headaches for 14 or more days each month."

After noting that there was no obvious reason for the differences in the effect of caffeine on people, the researchers advised those who suffer from occasional headaches to try cutting back on caffeine. Those who suffer from chronic headaches may reduce the amount and frequency of headaches they receive by drinking caffeine.

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Inside Science News Service is supported by the American Institute of Physics.