Parenting headaches.....

Other general therapeutic measures include identifying and removing headache triggers, regulating lifestyle, and instituting behavioral therapies. Common triggers in children include disrupted sleep, skipped meals, analgesic overuse, and stress. Behavior therapies such as relaxation techniques, stress management, and biofeedback have proved efficacious.

The role of diet in the management of acute-recurrent headache is controversial. It is unrealistic to impose elimination diets in most children and even more so in adolescents. A rational approach is to provide caregivers with a list of potential dietary precipitants, including cheese, processed meats, chocolate, nuts, pickles, and monosodium glutamate, and ask them to watch for a possible temporal link between the child's headache and any of these dietary components. Banning any or all of these food items is unreasonable unless there is a clear association between a food item and the onset of headaches.

Caffeine, however, warrants special mention, and efforts should be made to moderate its use. If a child or adolescent is consuming many caffeinated soft drinks or several cups of coffee daily, consideration should be given to the possible role of caffeine as a contributing factor to headache. Caffeine abuse or withdrawal can precipitate headaches in adolescents. In addition, analgesic compounds with caffeine have a demonstrated association with rebound headache.^17,18