A migraine headache is a group of neurological symptoms that usually includes a severe, recurring, intense, throbbing pain on one side of the head that can be very debilitating. Attacks can last between 4 and 72 hours. The actual headache is commonly accompanied by one or more of the following symptoms: visual disturbances, nausea, vomiting, dizziness and extreme sensitivity to sound, light, touch and smell.

 Most often, migraines affect people between the ages of 15 and 55, and are most common in women between the ages of 20 and 45. They're usually first diagnosed in people in their 20s and 30s. Initially it was believed that migraines were caused by the dilation and constriction of blood vessels in the head. But new research suggests that a migraine is actually a disorder involving nerve pathways and brain chemicals. Read more here: