Headaches not linked to gadgets use--study

Researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) found that there was no bond howsoever, between the usage of electronic devices such as mobile phones, laptops or television, and headaches, as believed earlier.

Lead researcher Astrid Milde-Busch, LMU said, “Studies into the occurrence of headaches have had mixed results, and for some types of media, in particular computer games, are completely lacking.”

1,025 teenagers studied
The researchers based their study on 1,025 teenagers in the age group of 13 to 17, to determine the cause and type of headache-- migraine, tension-type headache, and unclassifiable headache.

Factors like sex, family condition, and socio-economic status of the subjects were also taken into consideration.

For the study, the researchers questioned 489 adolescents who recounted headache occurrences once every month for the past six months, and 536 subjects who did not have the problem.

They found that 85 percent of the adolescents used computers, 90 percent watched television, and the same percentage listened to music every day, whereas only 23 percent of the subjects were using their cell phones, and 25 percent were playing games.

On analysis, the researchers found no significant connection between the use of electronic media, and different sorts of headaches. Neither could they reason a particular type of headache to any activity performed by the subjects.

But they verified a link between listening to music in routine, and headache incidences by and large.

Milde-Busch said that, “Excessive use of electronic media is often reported to be associated with long-lasting adverse effects on health like obesity or lack of regular exercise, or unspecific symptoms like tiredness, stress, concentration difficulties and sleep disturbances.”

“It cannot be concluded whether the habit of listening to music is the cause of frequent headaches or the consequence in the sense of a self-therapy by relaxation,” added Milde-Busch.

Details of the study appear in the Journal BMC Neurology.

Adolescence and headaches
Children can suffer from classic migraine characterized by nausea, vomiting, and visual changes but sleep can relieve them. Headaches can also trigger with stress but these do not get any better with sleep.

To avert any particular type of headache, the child needs to get sufficient sleep with appropriate food and regular exercise. Warding off unnecessary tensions can also prove helpful.