There is a connection between cluster headaches and magnesium and that is why there are doctor’s that prescribe a supplement with magnesium for cluster headaches, but what is exactly the connection between the two? The most accepted response would be that there are receptor sites in the brain that magnesium will bind to. These sites are known to be very excitatory in nature and the binding with the magnesium appears to calm them down. Severe lack of magnesium in the brain has been known to cause everything from apathy to psychosis in psychiatric conditions and can even cause seizures.

Magnesium for cluster headaches

Unfortunately up to 85% of the migraineurs are magnesium deficient. It is possible that the levels of magnesium in your blood don’t correlate to the levels in the fluid of your brain so when your doctor checks your levels it might be that he or she tries to put you off a bit.

Now, how exactly did you become magnesium deficient? It isn’t known why migraineurs are more deficient in magnesium than the rest of the world, but there are some things we know can cause it. The most common cause is the diet. If you don’t take enough magnesium in through your diet, this can be easily solved by changing to a healthier diet and taking multivitamins. But there are also other conditions that can lead to low magnesium levels. These conditions include, but aren’t limited to, diabetes and alcoholism. The two conditions mentioned cause more magnesium to leave your body through the kidneys. There are also medications that cause the same effect: diuretics, aminoglycosides, cisplatin, digoxin, cyclosporin and amphotericin B.

A lot of people are confuses as to which type of magnesium they need to take for their migraines. There are forms that aren’t well tolerated and can cause stomach problems. At the moment, the best tolerated type is magnesium citrate. If you take this form of magnesium, you should have less problems with the well known side effect of diarrhea which occurs about 10% of the time.

Now, what would be the minimum daily intake of magnesium a migraineur should take? Most experts agree that tit should be 400mg. There are a lot of studies done in the late ‘80’s that used this dose and there was a significant reduction in headaches. The studies done in more recent years has shown that up to 800mg per day may reduce the frequency and the pain of the migraines.

Again, if you choose to use magnesium for cluster headaches, remember to give it a least 90 days to have the full benefit. It takes the brain that long to make changes. Dietary intake will also help and this is found in green vegetables, beans and whole grains. Prolonged use of supplements of magnesium for cluster headaches should be balanced with calcium intake as over time magnesium has the potential to pull calcium from the bones.