Menstrual Migraine and Premenstrual Migraine Caused in part by Xenoestrogens

by Elizabeth Smith, MD

Menstrual migraine and premenstrual migraine headaches seem to be affected to xenoestrogens all the time during treatment in my clinical practice. If women get rid of their xenoestrogens in their environment, their menstrual migraines and premenstrual migraine headaches tend to get better and are prevented. I also typically the "dietary supplement vitamin " or " herbal supplement " Natural Progesterone. Natural Progesterone is an "over the counter" bioidentical natural hormone and can easily be bought without a prescription. This is natural migraine relief that is simple safe and inexpensive.

What we know so far (not very much)

For the state of the art list (which is still not very good) published in March of 2005. This is a compendium of research results in the literature of chemicals with estrogenic activity. Go Here. https://www.silsoe.cranfield.ac.uk/ieh/pdf/w20.pdf It seems that you must be a chemist to figure it out. Check out Group 6. These are estrogenic chemicals commonly used in consumer goods.

What does this have to do with you menstrual migraine headache or premenstrual migraine headache? Well, these chemicals are estrogenic ( mimic estrogen ) xenoestrogens and will make your menstrual migraine or premenstrual migraine worse.

So what do you do?

Avoid Xenoestrogens

Avoid the xenoestrogens and your menstrual migraine or premenstrual migraine will be prevented and you will find some relief.

In 1996, congress gave the EPA a mandate to test for xenoestrogen hormone disruption for different chemicals. As of 2006, the EPA is still trying to validate test methods for this program. It is NOT easy. Just to test single compounds is difficult enough. However, xenoestrogens are known to have synergistic effects and can multiply their effects when used together.

The bottom line is no one really knows yet anything about most of the chemicals in use in the USA. There has been no testing because no one know how to test for estrogen action just yet. The EPA is STILL working on it. Is the EPA dragging its feet? No. This is a difficult problem. And the list published in March of 2005 is only a partial list.

So what do you do for premenstrual migraine and menstrual migraine for prevention and relief?

Simplify

I usually tell my patients just to simplify as much as possible. Just use a hard bar soap for skin and shampoo. Find a hard bar soap that your hair likes. The reason why I say this is that as soon as you go to liquid shampoo a preservative must be added. This preservative is usually a paraben or phenoxyethanol which are both know to be a xenoestrogen.

Just use a vegetable oil on the skin to moisturize after a shower. Use the oil on the skin to lock in the moisture. No sunflower or safflower oil as these are estrogenic oils.

Health Food Store safe? Not Necessarily.

No herbs either. For instance, Lavender was recently found to create gynecomastia in young boys, otherwise known as "man boobs". Just because something is natural doesn't mean it is good for you. For instance, mushrooms are natural. Why don't you eat the mushrooms in your yard?

Yes, that expensive health food store lavender shampoo is likely making your migraine headache much worse.

So simplify!

See the next page on xenoestrogens for examples of hormone disruption.

The Bottom Line

Premenstrual Migraine and Menstrual Migraine Headaches can be Caused by Xenoestrogens

1. Menstrual Migraine and Premenstrual Migraine headaches are related to your hormones.

2. Chemicals can act like hormones.

3. The Scientific Community does NOT know much.

4. Health Food Store Products may not be better because of herbs that act like estrogen.

Buy Natural Progesterone!

About xenoestrogens (mimic estrogen)

• migraine101.com
• TIME Magazine on Precocious Puberty
• Colborn, PhD on Hormone Disrupters