The most substantial evidence for magnesium's effectiveness is in patients who have or have had aura with their migraine. It is believed magnesium may prevent the wave of brain signaling, called cortical spreading depression, which produces the visual and sensory changes in the common forms of aura.
Magnesium and migraines
Magnesium oxide is frequently used to prevent migraines. You can take it in pill form, with a general recommended dosage of about 400 to 500 milligrams a day.
Supplements such as riboflavin (B2), coenzyme Q10, magnesium3, niacin, carnitine, and lipoic acid, which support mitochondrial function, have been shown to help alleviate migraine headaches.
What's the Link Between Magnesium and Migraines? Studies have found that people who have migraines tend to have lower levels of magnesium than people who don't get headaches. Some scientists believe that magnesium blocks signals in the brain that lead to migraines with an aura, or changes in vision and other senses.
You should rest and avoid triggers such as bright lights until the vision disturbances are gone. There are both over-the-counter treatments and prescription medications that you can use to treat recurring migraine flares. Over-the-counter drugs like ibuprofen or Excedrin Migraine may also help reduce the symptoms.
Ocular migraines are typically caused by reduced blood flow or spasms of blood vessels in the retina or behind the eye. Risk factors include: Similar causes and risk factors for migraines. More common in women than men.
Harsh lighting, long screen time, other visual strain, stress, dehydration, food additives, and other causes all may trigger an ocular migraine, a subtype that focuses in the eye and causes vision changes.
Magnesium
A lack of magnesium has been linked to headaches and migraines. Comparatively, magnesium supplementation sometimes helps people treat visual disturbances, nausea, vomiting and other migraine symptoms. Research shows magnesium sometimes offers a preventative migraine treatment.
Ocular migraines and stroke are two conditions that share similar symptoms and can often be confused. Although an ocular migraine alone does not indicate a stroke, studies show that those who suffer from ocular migraines may be at a higher risk of experiencing a stroke.
Research on magnesium has found it to be a potentially well-tolerated, safe and inexpensive option for migraine prevention, while it may also be effective as an acute treatment option for headaches including migraines, tension- type headaches and cluster headaches, particularly in certain patient subsets.
A neurologist can help a patient distinguish between whether they are experiencing migraine aura or more serious retinal migraines. Neurologists use advanced technologies and state-of-the-art equipment to assess the electrical activity of the brain and how it is communicating with the eyes.
The American Migraine Foundation suggest taking a 400–500 milligram (mg) supplement of magnesium oxide daily to prevent migraines. Some researchers think that magnesium's effectiveness as a preventive against migraines increases when a person takes higher doses — over 600 (mg) — for at least 3 to 4 months.
Therefore, magnesium supplements can be taken at any time of the day, as long as you're able to take them consistently. For some, taking supplements first thing in the morning may be easiest, while others may find that taking them with dinner or just before bed works well for them.
If you have visual symptoms that have not previously been evaluated by a health care provider, you should see a provider if you have any of the following: Visual changes in only one eye. Visual changes that last less than five minutes and more than 60 minutes. Visual changes without a headache.
It is important to talk with a doctor about severe, frequent, or disabling headaches, as well as those that cause other symptoms, such as sensory problems or nausea. A person should seek emergency care for visual symptoms that affect only one eye.
Retinal migraines are rare, affecting 1 in 200 migraine sufferers. Retinal migraines cause repeated temporary episodes of blindness in just one eye. Most people experiencing a retinal migraine report that their vision suddenly becomes very blurry, or that there is a partial or complete “blackening out” of their vision.
In general, migraines likely involve alterations of blood flow to certain regions of the brain. In the case of ocular migraines, the involved area is the vision center of the brain.
Ocular migraine, or migraine with aura, and stroke are two different conditions. Having an attack doesn't mean you're having a stroke or are about to have one. However, research has shown that people with migraine with aura are at an increased risk of stroke.
People with ocular migraines can have a variety of visual symptoms. Typically you will see a small, enlarging blind spot (scotoma) in your central vision with bright, flickering lights (scintillations) or a shimmering zig-zag line (metamorphopsia) inside the blind spot.
But during a migraine, these stimuli feel like an all-out assault. The result: The brain produces an outsize reaction to the trigger, its electrical system (mis)firing on all cylinders. This electrical activity causes a change in blood flow to the brain, which in turn affects the brain's nerves, causing pain.
A typical ocular migraine will last for roughly 30 minutes, usually affecting one eye at a time.
Currently, no cure exists for migraine. Kaleidoscope vision, along with any other migraine symptoms, will typically go away on their own within an hour. People can take medications that relieve painful symptoms and prevent migraine episodes from developing in the first place.