Migraine is a women’s health issue.

Of the more than 38 million American sufferers, 28 million are women. Migraine is one of the leading serious health problems affecting women.

Women experience migraine differently than men. Women report episodic pain (often for a longer duration) and chronic pain more frequently than men. More severe and more frequent migraine attacks often result from changes in estrogen levels. Research has connected hormones to migraine, but not all migraines are hormonal.

During childhood, migraine is more prevalent in boys than in girls. But after puberty, when estrogen influence begins, the prevalence rises in girls. Girls are more likely to have their first migraine during the year their periods begin than at any other time in their lives. After puberty, migraine in women increases until age 40 or so, when it begins to decrease.

Women suffer from migraine three times as often as men. In the U.S., 18% of women suffer compared to 6% of men. Of those who suffer, 50% have more than 1 attack each month, and 25% have 4 or more severe attacks per month. 92% of women with severe migraine are disabled.

Many women find their migraine symptoms are affected by menstruation, hormonal contraception, pregnancy, and menopause.