• Question: why do we get headaches

    Asked by ladymiranda to Jen, Ben, James, Michael, Susanna on 12 Mar 2013. This question was also asked by kallum666666, serhat200.
    • Photo: Jen Todd Jones

      Jen Todd Jones answered on 12 Mar 2013:

      There are lots of different reason we might get headaches, but it’s important to note that they’re not actually brain-aches! The brain itself has no pain receptors at all, the pain you feel from a headache is usually due to the arteries and veins around the skull having too much pressure of blood flowing through them which causes them to become swollen and painful. Sometimes this happens because of a cold or a blocked nose, this has the same effect on your arteries.

      Most headaches will go away by themselves in time, you can help by drinking plenty of water or sleeping it off before you even need to think about taking paracetamol or ibuprofen!

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