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For migraine sufferers, relief could be in sight.
Migraines impact 1 billion people globally, and more than 90 percent of this population find their career, education and social life is negatively impacted, according to the American Migraine Foundation (AMF). Historically, the neurological disorder has been treated with over-the-counter medications like Excedrin or prescription drugs like sumatriptan and rizatriptan. Increasingly, though, consumers are seeking out non-medical preventive and reactive solutions — and wellness brands are responding in kind.
Aside from head pain, migraines can cause several other symptoms, including nausea, muscle weakness, ringing in the ears, vision changes, neck stiffness and more, according to the Cleveland Clinic. They can be triggered by an array of factors, including hormonal fluctuations, bright lights, loud noises, gluten, dairy, chocolate and magnesium deficiency. While migraines impact one in four households in the United States, there are other types of severe headaches and neurological disorders that cause head pain and these related symptoms.
“[Migraines specifically are] a throbbing, severe headache that has a pulsating head pain, and it’s generally on one side of the head,” said Dr. Sina Smith, integrative medicine doctor who specializes in migraines, acupuncturist and author of “Demystifying Acupuncture: Modern Answers About Ancient Medicine.”
Smith pointed to several triggers including chocolate, gluten, dairy, magnesium deficiency, loud noises, hormonal fluctuations and bright lights, which can also impact other types of headaches.
“Headaches are the third most common type of pain that people experience,” said Mintel health and wellness analyst Lindsay Cameron. “We have 73 percent of adults experiencing headaches or migraines at least once in the past 12 months.”
With this volume of sufferers, the hashtag #Migraines on TikTok receives nearly 21 million views weekly and is growing, according to date from Spate. Massagers, magnesium supplements and natural remedies, in particular, are gaining the most search traction in relation to migraines, per the firm.
According to Smith, magnesium, a popular supplement since the rise of the sleepy girl mocktail, has become a crucial ingredient in the migraine solution market.
“[Magnesium is] one of the most practical and most powerful in my medical practice,” she said, adding that she often recommends powder versions as they are easily absorbed.
Many powdered versions on the market, like Moon Juice’s Magnesi-Om, $44, employ several versions of magnesium to boost levels and support healthy sleep. Experts say topical versions like Uma’s Pure Calm Wellness Essence Magnesium Oil Spray, $60, can also be beneficial when applied to areas of tension. Other topicals like Osea’s Vagus Nerve Oil, $48, employ essential oils shown to reduce stress, which is a common contributor to headaches.
Lights, including computer screens, can also be a migraine trigger, which has led to a growing market of eye masks, massagers and glasses.
According to data from Spate, eye massagers are one of the fastest growing trends on TikTok. Therabody’s version, SmartGoggles, $199, implements heat, massage and light-blocking compression around the eye and temple area — users can customize the experience and only use certain features.
“We do hear that customers are looking for solutions for headaches [and] migraines,” said Tim Roberts, vice president of science and innovation at Therabody. “As we designed the SmartGoggles and the SleepMask, the idea of pain related to the head was at the forefront of some of our design conversations… The best products on the market are providing a comprehensive number of modalities that can be a solution and allowing the individual to personalize.”
More targeted treatments, like the Headaterm2, $130, or the Cefaly Connected, $424, which both use electrical stimulation therapy on the nerves of the forehead to prevent and ease migraine pain, are also expected to grow.
Less tech-y options like the Ostrichpillow Hot & Cold Eye Mask, $39, which uses thermal therapy to heat or cool the area and weight and light pressure to ease tension, are also gaining traction. Similarly, the HungovrAF Cooling Hangover & Headache Cap, $40, which employs gel therapy in a cap that covers the whole head, can provide hot or cold compression. As the name suggests, it wasn’t developed with migraines in mind but has proven to be a viable solution for headache sufferers who have touted the cap’s benefits on social media.
“When you wake up and your head is absolutely pounding, and the light hurts and everything hurts, that’s when [you] slip it on [and] take 15 minutes of breathing through how cold it is,” said founder Lauren Ferry.
Preventive solutions are expected to drive the market forward in the future, according to Cameron, such as trigger-free food brands like Amia and light-filtering glasses like Avulux. For many, glasses are the easiest daily habit to implement. Avulux’s clinically proven glasses employ lenses that filter out most of the harmful red, blue and amber light, while letting in green light, which has been proven to be soothing.
“[With the glasses, people are] able to exist around light, so that they can get out of that dark room,” said Avulux vice president of sales Andrea Posternack. “They can continue on with their day.”
Posternack, a migraine sufferer herself, said by wearing the glasses consistently rather than episodically and removing bright lights from her office, she cut her migraines down from nearly every other day to four-to-six per month.
As migraine patients continue to seek out non-medical solutions, experts predict new modalities will hit the market in the coming years.
“As scientists become more informed around these primary and secondary disorders, it means that solutions will become more tailored and refined,” said Roberts, pointing to light treatments and low magnetic field solutions as areas to watch.
Here, a closer look at eight products that could ease headache and migraine pain.
Ostrichpillow Hot & Cold Eye Mask, $39
This weighted eye mask applies pressure to the area of pain and can also be used hot or cold to further soothe migraines and headaches.
ostrichpillow.com
Amia Baked Oat and Seed Bars, $24
Amia’s Baked Oat and Seed Bars remove key triggers like chocolate and gluten for a migraine-friendly snack.
amia.com
Therabody SmartGoggles, $199
Therabody’s SmartGoggles apply compression, heat and massage to the eye and temple area, while also blocking out headache-triggering light.
therabody.com
HungovrAF Cooling Hangover & Headache Cap, $40
The HungovrAF Cooling Hangover & Headache Cap applies compression to ease the area of tension, and can be used hot or cold depending on the user’s needs.
hungoveraf.com
Moon Juice Magnesi-Om, $44
According to experts, magnesium deficiencies can often be a trigger of migraines and headaches. This version from Moon Juice features multiple forms of magnesium to promote healthy sleep and boost overall magnesium levels.
moonjuice.com
Avulux Migraine Glasses, starting at $335
Avulux’s lenses filter out harmful red, blue and amber light, while letting in soothing green light to prevent and treat migraines.
avulux.com
Osea Vagus Nerve Oil, $48
This essential oil blend can be applied to the vagus nerve, along the sides of the neck, to soothe the body and reduce stress that could cause a headache or migraine.
osea.com
HeadaTerm 2 Migraine Headache Relief Device, $130
This clinically proven device employs electrical stimulation technology on the headache-causing nerves in the forehead to reduce pain in the moment and prevent it in the long term.
emeterm.com
