Nearly One-Third Of Global Population Suffers From Headache Disorders, Study Finds

Almost 3 billion people worldwide experience headache disorders, affecting nearly one in three individuals. Women face more than double the lifetime headache-related health problems compared to men. “Women experience significantly higher levels of headache-related disability because they have headaches more frequently and for longer durations than men,” said investigator Yvonne Xu from the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Researchers analyzed data from nearly 42,000 people across 18 countries for 2023. Headache disorders ranked sixth among all disability causes, with 542 years lived with disability per 100,000 people. Women showed 740 years versus 364 for men per 100,000. Lead researcher Andreas Kattem Husøy noted “a large part of the global headache burden is preventable.” (Story URL)