Since the start of the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, migraines and headaches have become a significant issue for members in the U.S. armed forces and are seriously affecting their lives, according to an article published by The Washington Post.

Considering headaches are often associated with physiological stress and physical trauma, researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine wanted to see if military personnel returning from deployment were suffering from such ailments, according to the abstract of the study.

Only 33.6 percent of soldiers who leave war due to headaches and migraines return. The combined physical trauma and physiological stress that comes with war results in negative health outcomes for veterans, according to the article.

‘Migraines are caused by a combination of things: PDI, which is traumatic brain injury, and PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder. It usually has to do with both physiological stress and brain injury,’ said Dessa Bergen-Cico, an assistant professor at the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics.

More than 6 percent of men and more than 16 percent of women who had a history of anxiety or depression while in a war zone developed migraines, according to the article.

Bergen-Cico works with veterans suffering from PTSD, but she said she focuses more on veterans’ anxiety and substance abuse after they return home. She still found that some of them do suffer from debilitating migraines.

But some measures can be taken to try and lessen the severity of migraines. Bergen-Cico said many people find relief in mindfulness-based stress reduction because it helps them understand and recognize triggers.

‘Even further, recent research has even found that handling daily stress and anxiety so things don’t build up are also very helpful with avoiding migraines and other stresses of post- deployment,’ she said.

The growing recognition of migraine and headache sufferers is prompting a new concern among military personnel, as these ailments can be extremely disabling, according to the article.

Due to these realizations, the Defense Department began funding millions of dollars in research about migraines and headaches, as scientists are now studying new treatments and therapies, according to the article. These studies are beneficial not only for military personnel, but also for civilians.

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Published on November 14, 2011 at 12:00 pm