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HeadWay, Issue #158 -- Seen for the first time this month!
October 21, 2017
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In this issue:

New Brain Discovery

The Latest at Headache and Migraine News

Say what?! Lymphatic System


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New Brain Discovery

It's a discovery that shows the amazing breakthroughs in science that we're seeing today. But it also shows how little we know.

Most doctors today were taught about the lymphatic system, a system that helps the body get rid of waste. It's very important in migraine and headache research, because of its relation to immunity and inflammation.

Doctors also know that there's are no lymphatic vessels inside the skull.

Except - there are.

In 2015, researchers began to realize that this system might exist. Testing seemed to confirm it. And this year - this month - October 2017 - researchers proved it visually for the first time.

That's right, after years of slicing and dicing the brain, taking pictures with all our fancy machinery - we didn't notice these vessels in the brain.

Well, ok, someone drew a diagram of them 200 years ago, but we won't talk about that.

What does this tell us?

There are two important things we need to note about this amazing discovery.

First, I've said it before and I'll say it again - we don't know nearly as much as we think we do. Those who are annoyed that genetics hasn't yet cured most diseases (like migraine), those who just want to "take a pill" - they all need to realize that we know surprisingly little about the brain and headache conditions.

This does lend more strength to modern proverbs like "let the body heal itself". The truth is that much common wisdom (like getting exercise and eating fruits and vegetables) is based on not ten years of research, but thousands of years of research and experience.

But there's another side. We have learned a lot in the past 20 years. There is no reason to throw out all these amazing new discoveries.

This discovery could have major implications for headache research. But it also points again to the importance of the lymphatic system in general.

How do you care for this system? Some very simple things.
  1. Get enough sleep. If you have trouble, get obsessive and start setting alarms to remind you to get to bed.
  2. Stay hydrated. Yes, this has an affect on this system.
  3. Healthy diet and exercise.
  4. Massage, trigger point therapy
Before you jump on the "latest thing", remember that things are probably a lot more complex than we usually think. But we can still learn from the current research, if we learn with patient caution.

Fore more research, check out:

The Latest at Headache and Migraine News

Say what?! Lymphatic System

The lymphatic system, according to MedicineNet is "the tissues and organs, including the bone marrow, spleen, thymus, and lymph nodes, that produce and store cells that fight infection and disease. The channels that carry lymph are also part of this system." Another way to describe this is that the lymphatic system is a system that does clean up in the body on a wide scale. It helps fight disease and also cleans up excess fluid and other particles.

If you're ready for more in-depth information, check out Lymphatic System: Facts, Functions and Diseases

Thanks for reading!  Remember, if you have feedback or ideas for future issues, visit the HeadWay MailRoom.  Your password is nomoache.
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