There are many added health risks to being pregnant. Here we look at the association of migraines during pregnancy and the increased risk to you and your babys health.

A recent study in the US has linked migraines during pregnancy with an increase in the risk of a stroke, in fact fifteen times more likely than non pregnant women. However, the British Medical Journal has also stated that the overall risk is actually low.

Information was collated from over 33,000 pregnant women who were also experiencing migraines.

Other factors involved were age. Women over forty were found to be more at risk, being 2.5 times more likely to experience a migraine while pregnant than those that were less than 20. It was also discovered that white women experienced more migraines whilst pregnant than other races or ethnicities.

It is beleived that the cardiovascular system is not operating correctly and that the migraine is simply a sympton of this. There are links with migraines and increased risks of high cholesterol, blood clots, heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure.

The producers of the study believe the best explanation of the results is the interaction of migraines and the natural physiological changes that occur while pregnant (e.g. an increase in heart rate and blood volume) and that this results in additional stress on the vascular system.

Other research has shown that the endothelial cells, that form the inside wall of blood vessels, do not operate as well in woman who experience migraines while pregnant.

The study further links migraines with an increase in the risk of stroke and heart disease, particularly when accompanied with a visual distortion or an aura.