Children get migraine headaches, too. Over 8 million children and adolescents have migraines that result in more than 1 million lost school days each year. Before puberty, as many boys as girls get these headaches. However, after puberty, migraine is more common in girls. By age 15, 5% of adolescents have experienced a migraine attack. Migraines often stop as children grow to adulthood, but may return in middle age. In 70% of cases, there is a family history of migraine. Although the mechanism that initiates a migraine attack is believed to be the same in children and adults, physicians look for slightly different symptoms to diagnose migraine in.

Causes :
The exact cause of migraine is uncertain, although various theories are being studied. One theory favored by many researchers is that migraine is due to a vulnerability of the nervous system to sudden changes in either your body or the environment around you. Many researchers believe that migraine sufferers have inherited a more sensitive nervous system response than those without migraine. During a migraine attack, changes in brain activity produce inflamed blood vessels and nerves around the brain. Migraine medication may produce relief by quieting sensitive nerve pathways and reducing the inflammation response.

Diagonosis:
There is no medical test that can specifically diagnose migraine. Migraine can only be diagnosed by effectively communicating your symptoms to your physician. To evaluate headaches, the physician will likely:

• Ask about the location, severity, frequency, and duration of the headache.
• Inquire about any other symptoms that accompany the headaches.
• Take a detailed medical history, including any medications that one may be taking.
• Give a complete physical exam.
• Compare the symptoms with the criteria developed by headache specialists who diagnose migraine.

For most people there is not just one trigger but a combination of factors which individually can be tolerated but when they all occur together a threshold is passed and an attack is triggered. Although it can be helpful to identify and avoid your own personal trigger factors it is important not to become too obsessive. Everyone has the capacity to suffer from migraine but in some people, most probably because of a genetic predisposition, the threshold at which attacks occur is lower. It has been proven that there is no "migraine type" and sufferers are not, as is sometimes suggested neurotic, perfectionist hypochondriacs who bring all their problems on themselves nor even, as has also been suggested, that they are super intelligent or extra sensitive. Although twice as many women as men suffer from migraine because of the involvement of hormonal factors, migraineurs come from all walks of life, all areas of the world and ethnic groups, and all social classes.

Symptoms :

• A moderate-to-severe headache that usually lasts from 4 to 72 hours.
• Pain is often, but not always, on one side of the head and throbbing.
• Pain is aggravated by movement or physical activity.
• Pain is often associated with nausea (and when severe, with vomiting) and sensitivity to light, sound, or odors.
• If the headache is associated with flashing lights or blindness, or numbness on one side of the head, it is called classic migraine or migraine with aura. However, only 20% of people with migraine have auras. If you do not have an aura, your headache may still be a migraine.
• Tension-type headaches account for lost workdays and an even larger number of reduced-effectiveness days at work, home, and school.

Recommendations : Stress and anxiety
A variety of relaxation techniques can help you manage your body's response to life's daily pressures. Learn to pace your activities. Try to set aside time each day to sit quietly with your eyes closed, let your muscles relax, and give your mind a break. Try not to worry about stress that is beyond your control. Regular physical activity can also help keep you on an even keel.

Environmental factors
Environmental triggers of migraine headaches include weather or temperature changes, glaring or fluorescent lights, computer screens, strong odors, and high altitude.

Protective measures
Steps you can take to increase your resistance to migraine include regular sleep, a healthy diet, eating at predictable times, regular exercise, not smoking, relaxation, and meditation