The study is scheduled to be presented during the American Academy of Neurology’s annual meeting in Seattle, April 25 to May 2.

 

The study involved 22,211 people enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The researchers measured abdominal obesity by waist circumference or the total size around the waist. The overall obesity was measured by using the body mass index, a ration between weight and height.

 

The participants were asked to report whether they suffered from either migraines or severe headaches.

 

After reviewing the data, lead author of the study B. Lee Peterlin of Drexel University College of Medicine and colleagues found that people ages 20 to 55 with larger waistlines were more likely to report migraines or other severe headaches.

 

To be more precise, 37 percent of women with abdominal obesity reported experiencing such headaches, compared to 29 percent of non-obese women. As for men, 20 percent with abdominal obesity reported migraines compared with 16 percent who did not have abdominal obesity.

 

“These results, while still in the early stages, suggest that losing weight in the stomach area may be beneficial for younger people who experience migraine, and especially so for women,” Dr. Peterlin said.

 

Migraines, which may include nausea, vomiting and sensitivity to light and noise, affect about 30 million people in the United States, or 10 percent of the population, according to estimates by the National Headache Foundation. Migraines occur most frequently between the ages of 20 and 45, especially in women.