Women are more likely to get headaches than men –

Women suffer from headaches much more often than men.

The researchers found that 6 percent, or just over one in 20, have a headache for at least half of each month, compared to 2.9 percent of men.

Their assessment of the global number of headaches concluded that women were twice as likely to suffer from migraines than men.

They found that 17% of women suffer from migraines, which can last up to three days and lead to vomiting and sensitivity to light and sound. But migraine only affected 8.6 percent of men.

Changes in hormones may be one of the reasons women are most affected, as any fluctuation in estrogen can cause headaches.

The study, from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, examined 357 studies on headache from the 1960s to the present.

Researchers estimate that one in six people in the world suffers from a headache every day.

The review, published in The Journal of Headache and Pain, found that people in high-income countries report increased rates of headaches, but this may be because more research has been done in wealthy countries.

Professor Lars Jacob Stovner, who led the study, said: “Women suffer far more than men from the most debilitating headaches: migraines and headaches that last 15 or more days a month.

“This is important because severe headaches, which are unpredictable and common, make it very difficult to cope with life responsibilities such as keeping a job or looking after a family.”

Saying that the methodology of several studies can provide unreliable numbers for headaches, the authors aren’t sure if the problem is escalating.

But Professor Stovner said: ‘We found that the prevalence of headache disorders is high worldwide and the burden of different types can affect many.

“We must try to reduce this burden through prevention and better treatment.”

Changes in hormones may be one of the reasons women are most affected, as any fluctuation in estrogen can cause headaches (stock image)