Just like adults, children get headaches. In fact, 40 percent of all children have had a headache by age 7, and they can have migraines and tension headaches.

A few medications should be avoided when treating a child’s headache, says Dr. Jay Cook, interim director of child neurology at Children’s Medical Center of Dallas. Chronic use of Tylenol can, ironically, serve as a trigger for migraines, and codeine leads to “rebound” headaches in many young patients. Aspirin should never be given to children younger than 15. Instead, Dr. Cook recommends the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines such as ibuprofen (Advil and Motrin) and naprosyn (Aleve). For the occasional headache sufferer, acetaminophen (Tylenol) may suffice. Migraines that occur on a regular basis, such as one or two a week, may require a prescription for a few months to break the cycle.

However, Dr. Cook says the best way to treat any headache is to prevent it. Proper diet, physical activity and improved sleeping habits can decrease the incidence of headaches.

If your child has any of the following conditions, schedule a visit with your pediatrician:

• Headaches that wake your child at night or that he consistently wakes up with in the morning.
• Headaches associated with early morning vomiting.
• Headaches that worsen by a cough or sneeze.
• Headaches that continue to get worse or more frequent despite treatment.
• Significant changes in intellectual performance or behavior.
• Sudden lack of coordination or change in motor abilities.
• Any headache with fever. “Depending on how sick the child looks, a headache and fever, especially high fever, may require a medical assessment quickly – in the physician’s office or in the ER.”

For more information, see the online health information at www.childrens.com.

Are experienced by as many as 5 percent of children, more commonly by boys until puberty, and thereafter more commonly by girls.				Are experienced by 69 percent of boys and 88 percent of girls.
Are heralded by an “aura” – sensations of lights, wavy lines, smells or abdominal distress.				Develop slowly.
Start with pulsing pain in one spot and spread over the course of five to 60 minutes to a larger, but still localized area, up to half the head.				Involve pain that is balanced around the head or on both sides of the head or neck.
Can cause light and noise sensitivity, as well as dizziness and nausea that may not be relieved by vomiting.				Do not usually involve nausea, vomiting or light sensitivity.
Are often an inherited tendency.				Are caused by muscle contraction and may be due to illness or infection.
Can be brought on by triggers, such as certain foods, spices or odors.				Can be brought on by muscle strain or stress.