There comes a point when the world of deadlines, irksome bosses, late nights, skimpy sleep schedules and traffic jams takes a toll on us. It is then when our quintessential cup of coffee surrenders to splitting headaches. So, what do you do when you're bad day culminates to a severe migraine? The easy way out is of course to pop a painkiller, maybe even indulge in acupressure, sip on some chamomile tea. And we're willing to do just about anything to get rid of that pounding headache. Lucky for you, we've compiled a list of 10 natural home remedies that will zap the pain from your debilitating headache. Your search for the best headache home remedies ends here, as we've got your back. In this article, we've included some tips and home remedies for headaches. Natural remedies are a drug-free way to reduce headache. These at-home treatments may help prevent headache, or at least help reduce their severity and duration.
Here are 10 home remedies for headaches that really work:

Managing Your Headaches

"Headaches are characterised by a feeling of tenseness in the neck, shoulder and scalp whereas migraines are basically pulsating headaches, often on one side of the head.

It is essential that you avoid headache-inducing substances like MSG (monosodium glutamate), excessive caffeine, alcohol, phenylethylamine found in chocolate and cheese, tyramine found in nuts and fermented meats and soy, and aspartame present in many artificially sweetened foods. If you start getting a headache, steer clear of all devices including your phone, laptop and TV. Eat healthy, and at regular intervals since a drop in blood sugar can set the stage for headaches. At least thrice a week, if not more, spend 30 minutes exercising. And always, we mean always, stay hydrated.

1. Ginger, The All-Rounder

Touted as an elixir for headaches, ginger is a home remedy for instant relief. It helps reduce inflammation of the blood vessels in the head, hence easing the pain. And since it stimulates digestion, it also helps quell nausea which occurs during migraines.

Wondering how to use this miracle ingredient as a home remedy for a headache? Steep ginger root for tea, or mix equal parts of ginger juice and lemon juice and drink up. You can consume this once or twice a day. You can also apply a paste of ginger powder and 2 tablespoons water on your forehead for a few minutes to provide quicker relief.

2. Soothe with Scent

Peppermint Oil: With its refreshing scent, peppermint helps open up clogged blood vessels which cause a headache. It contains menthol which helps regulate blood flow in the body. Quietly breathe in the aroma in a cool, darkroom. You can also mix 3 drops of peppermint oil in one tablespoon of almond oil, or just add a little water and massage the temples or the back of your neck with it. Alternatively, can apply crushed peppermint leaves on your forehead. Make an herbal tea by adding 1 teaspoon of dried peppermint to a cup of boiling water. Cover and let it steep for 10 minutes. Strain and add some honey to sweeten it. Sip the tea slowly.

Lavender Oil: Not only does lavender have a beautiful fragrance - it's also a great remedy for alleviating headaches. Simply smelling the soothing scent of lavender essential oil helps, so you can just put a few drops on a tissue and inhale it. You can also add 2 drops of lavender oil to two cups of boiling water and inhale the steam. Another option is to mix two or three drops in one tablespoon of almond oil or olive oil and massage your forehead with it.

3. Cinnamon Please!

Cinnamon is a miracle spice that is known as one of the effective headache remedies. Wondering how to use it? Here's help: Grind some cinnamon sticks into a powder, and add some water to make a thick paste. Apply it on your forehead and temples and lie down for 30 minutes. Then wash it off with lukewarm water.

4. Make Time for Thyme

To relieve headache pain, dab a drop or two of thyme or rosemary essential oil on each temple and on your forehead. Rub gently into the skin, then sit quietly for several minutes to let this home remedy work. Thank us, later!

5. Basic Stretches

A few simple exercises to stretch your head and neck can help reduce the intensity of the headache. Move your chin upwards and downwards, left and right, and bend your neck sideways towards each shoulder. You can also try to slowly rotate the neck in clockwise and anticlockwise directions to help the shoulder and neck muscles relax. So when a headache looms, you know what to do.

6. Heat Up or Cool Down?

Applying an ice pack to the back of your neck can give relief from a migraine, since the cold from the ice helps reduce inflammation that contributes to headaches. Plus, it has a numbing effect on the pain. And believe it or not, just soaking your feet in hot water also helps get rid of a headache. For a severe headache, add a bit of hot mustard powder to the water.

7. Crazy for Cloves

Cloves can be used to ease a throbbing headache due to its cooling and pain-relieving properties. Crush a few cloves gently and put them in a sachet or a clean handkerchief. Inhale the smell of the crushed cloves whenever you have a headache until you get some relief from the pain. You can also put 2 drops of clove oil in a tablespoon of coconut oil plus sea salt and gently massage your forehead and temples with it.

8. Basil Is The Best

A strong-scented herb which is used for natural headache treatment, it has many analgesic benefits. The oil works as a muscle relaxant and helps get rid of headaches caused by tension and tight muscles. You can put 3 or 4 fresh basil leaves in a cup of boiling water and let it simmer. Add a little honey and sip the tea slowly. You can also chew some fresh basil leaves, or inhale the steam after boiling basil in a pot of water.

9. Apple A Day Keeps The Doctor Away

Both apples and apple cider vinegar can be used to fight off a headache. They help restore the acid-alkaline balance in the body. "Mix half cup of apple cider vinegar with half cup of water and boil the mixture in a covered saucepan. Remove from heat, hold a towel over your head and slowly inhale the steam.

If you wake up with a headache, just eat a piece of apple sprinkled with salt, and drink some warm water after. Or add 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar to a glass of water, with honey and a splash of lemon juice. Drink it 2 or 3 times a day.

10. The Power of Prevention

Could striking a camel pose ease your aching head? Yes, yoga combines physical postures, breathing exercises and meditation to boost relaxation. It will get your mind focused, stretch out your muscles, and get you moving in ways that can help you drop the tension. Regularly practicing yoga is the best thing to do, after all prevention is better than cure.

Headache

Headaches are one of the most common medical complaints; most people experience them at some point in their life. They can affect anyone regardless of age, race, and gender.

Important Causes of headache:
1) Migraine
2) Brain tumors in the brain, brain tumor
3) Strain stress

When it comes to health, there is no taking a chance. Most of us are in the habit of storing some medicines at home, which could come in handy, say for a headache or an acidity attack. However, these often remain in the medicine kit for a long time before they are actually used. So finally, when the day arrives when there is an actual need for it, we are not sure if it is still usable. The one thing we dread is the use of a medicine, which is past its expiry date.

What if there is an adverse event? What if there is a complication or a side effect?

Then, if we are not in a position to get a fresh pill, we would rather endure the pain or acidity than pop that outdated pill. Is it really prudent to do so? Experts say otherwise. Most medicines have the expiry date to indicate the date or time, until when the drug would have the most potency and efficacy. Meaning to say, the drug may become weak (take longer to act or may require more of the drug to produce the same effect) when taken after the listed expiry date.

The truth is that most pharma companies list a date, which could be months, if not years, ahead of the actual expiry date. In reality, a drug never really expires. Most medicines can be used up to a few months after this date. Some medicines may even be useful after years of their expiry date.

It depends as to what the medicine is for:

Painkillers are usually harmless to take beyond the expiry date. If there is no effect (even prolonged), then try to get a fresh one.

Chronic medications like anti-hypertensives and anti-diabetic medications can be used up to a few months at the most, not beyond. Make sure to monitor readings to check for the efficacy. Often times, a greater dose may be required to get the desired effect, but this should not be done without medical supervision.

Biologic products like EpiPen, eye drops or injectable substances should not be used if they are cloudy. In fact, most of these should be kept for a very short period after opening.

With any expired medicine, keep your doctor posted, especially your chronic meds to seek further advice and information.

The place and the way the drug is stored also may help in retaining its strength. A drug stored in the fridge is safer than something stashed away in a cupboard with a lot of other things. Keep these in mind, and take a call!

When it comes to health, there is no taking a chance. Most of us are in the habit of storing some medicines at home, which could come in handy, say for a headache or an acidity attack. However, these often remain in the medicine kit for a long time before they are actually used. So finally, when the day arrives when there is an actual need for it, we are not sure if it is still usable. The one thing we dread is the use of a medicine, which is past its expiry date.

What if there is an adverse event? What if there is a complication or a side effect?

Then, if we are not in a position to get a fresh pill, we would rather endure the pain or acidity than pop that outdated pill. Is it really prudent to do so? Experts say otherwise. Most medicines have the expiry date to indicate the date or time, until when the drug would have the most potency and efficacy. Meaning to say, the drug may become weak (take longer to act or may require more of the drug to produce the same effect) when taken after the listed expiry date.

The truth is that most pharma companies list a date, which could be months, if not years, ahead of the actual expiry date. In reality, a drug never really expires. Most medicines can be used up to a few months after this date. Some medicines may even be useful after years of their expiry date.

It depends as to what the medicine is for:

Painkillers are usually harmless to take beyond the expiry date. If there is no effect (even prolonged), then try to get a fresh one.

Chronic medications like anti-hypertensives and anti-diabetic medications can be used up to a few months at the most, not beyond. Make sure to monitor readings to check for the efficacy. Often times, a greater dose may be required to get the desired effect, but this should not be done without medical supervision.

Biologic products like EpiPen, eye drops or injectable substances should not be used if they are cloudy. In fact, most of these should be kept for a very short period after opening.

With any expired medicine, keep your doctor posted, especially your chronic meds to seek further advice and information.

The place and the way the drug is stored also may help in retaining its strength. A drug stored in the fridge is safer than something stashed away in a cupboard with a lot of other things. Keep these in mind, and take a call!

Between myopia or short sightedness and hypermetropia or farsightedness, the latter is less common. However, this does not make it any less important. Farsightedness or long sightedness refers to a refractive error in the eye lens that creates problems focusing on objects nearby. This is because the light entering the eye does not converge on the retina but does so behind the retina.

Long sightedness can be caused by a number of factors. Some of these are:

Structural problems with the eye: Some people are born with structural problems. This is one of the leading causes of long sightedness. These structural conditions include:

1. A cornea that is not steep enough
2. A short eyeball
3. A flattened lense
4. A thicker than normal lense

Age: Long sightedness rarely affects children. This is a condition that becomes noticeable after the age of 40 in most cases. With age the lenses in the eyes become stiffer and do not curve normally. This is known as presbyopia.

Genetics: As with myopia, hypermetropia is also triggered by genetic faults. If someone in your family suffers from this then chances are that you will too. However, the specific genes that transfer this condition from one generation to the next have not been discovered as yet.

Underlying conditions: Long sightedness is also triggered by underlying conditions such as diabetes, under development of a baby's eye during pregnancy (read more about diabetes and pregnancy), orbital tumours and problems with the blood vessels in the retina.

Not being able to read a book clearly is one of the most common symptoms of long sightedness. Some of its other symptoms are:

1. Needing to squint to focus on objects
2. Headaches
3. Pain or burning in the eyes
4. Fatigue caused by reading, writing or working on a computer
5. Red and watery eyes

Long sightedness can be correctly diagnosed only with a thorough eye examination. Hence it is essential to schedule one regularly. This becomes more important as a person gets older. If left untreated, it can lead to double vision which in turn can trigger two possible eye problems.

Strabismus: This is a condition where the eyes get misaligned and hence do not work in tandem. People suffering from this condition find their eyes focusing on two independent objects instead of seeing the same thing.

Amblyopia: Double vision can make one eye more dominant than the other. This makes the muscles of one eye degenerate at higher rate than the other making it lazy. This is known as amblyopia.