Why do some people get a headache when a thunderstorm is approaching?

Question

Why do some people get a headache when a thunderstorm is approaching?

Answer 1

It all has to do with the rise in barometric pressure as the storm is building - I think the precise mechanism is still unknown.

Answer 2

The change in air pressure might be one explanation but I suspect it may also be the presence of large quantities of positive ions ( charges) in the air attracted from the ground by the charged cloud.

Some people buy negative ionisers to improve their health.  

Answer 3

Atmospheric pressure seems to be the answer. But no one really knows how and why.

When flying in an airliner, you are subject to a lesser pressure which correspond to about an altitude of 4,000 ft above sea level. At a sinking rate of one hectoPascal per 25 feet of altitude, that gives you a ambient pressure that is much less than that found in the center of a thunderstorm.

Blood pressure has certainly something to do with headache. Heavy coffee drinkers, for example, suffer headaches when in abstinence. This can  be relieved by acetylsalicylic acid found e.g. in an Aspirin, that makes the blood thinner, thus flowing better in the brain.

But it is not possible to associate the atmospheric pressure to the blood pressure. When measuring your blood pressure in millimeters or inches of mercury, you don't need to compensate it for the actual atmospheric pressure, right? And people living at high altitude like Bolivia, don't have a different blood pressure, right?

I am afraid this is still a mystery for science.

Answer 4

It is not just headaches but sinus trouble and joint pain.  Atmospheric pressure is the reason.  The lower the pressure the more inflammation can swell up.  Inflammation causes swelling that causes pain.  It is not unusual for people with ailments such as bursitis to have greater sensitivity to atmospheric pressure.  However, depending on where one lives, low pressure does not always result in rain or thunderstorms.

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Answer 5

It has to do with air pressure, some people are sensitive to barometric pressure and can feel the change. It would seem there is no definitive answer, I could copy paste a lot of facts and figures here like people do and although a lot of surveys and tests have been done that indicate there is a connection, there is not one piece of conclusive evidence the only thing that is proven is that the change in barometric pressure can sometimes affect slightly the way people feel but it is thought that the psychological affect of knowing that bad weather is coming is also a contributory factor and as this can act on a persons subconscious it makes most research invalid.

Answer 6

sensitivity to the pressure the storm is producing.

Answer 7

atmospheric pressure , it affects them ( including me ) during change of weather also .

Answer 8

pressure in the air it happens to me sometimes.