You can see it coming before you feel it. A clean arch of blue sky over the mountains, the wind starts to pick up, and by supper the snow is melting and the temperature has jumped 15 or 20 degrees. For a lot of people in southern Alberta, that same day comes with something less welcome: a pounding headache.
If you have ever been told it’s “all in your head,” here’s the good news. It is in your head, but not the way they meant. Researchers right here in Alberta have studied it, and chinook headaches are real.
Quick poll: Do chinooks give you headaches? Vote and share what helps you.
What a chinook actually is
A chinook is a warm, dry west wind that comes down the east side of the Rocky Mountains. Air rising over the mountains drops much of its moisture as rain and snow on the BC side, then warms quickly as it sinks down onto the prairie. That’s why Lethbridge can go from deep freeze to shirt-sleeve weather in a matter of hours. Before the warm wind arrives, the air pressure often falls, and the chinook arch, that long band of clear sky along the mountains, is the classic sign it’s on the way. Our free Weather School lesson on chinooks and mountain weather explains how it all works.
What the research found
Neurologists at the University of Calgary’s headache clinic compared about two years of headache diaries from 75 migraine patients with Environment Canada weather records. Their study, published in the journal Neurology in 2000, found:
- Migraines were more likely to start on the day before a chinook and on chinook days than on ordinary days.
- The strongest link was on high-wind chinook days, with winds above about 38 km/h.
- Not everyone was affected. According to the release about the study, 32 of the 75 patients were more likely to get a migraine in chinook weather, and most patients weren’t sensitive at all.
- Some people reacted only on the day before, others only to the high winds. Just two patients reacted to both.
- Older patients were more likely to be bothered by the high-wind days.
So if your headache hits the night before the warm wind arrives, and your neighbour’s hits once the wind is howling, you may both be right.
A newer University of Calgary study, published in 2025, followed 60 children and teens with migraine and did not find a link for young people. The researchers said there may simply be no link at that age, or the study may have been too small to show it, so the question for kids is still open.
Why does it happen?
Nobody knows for sure yet. The leading ideas:
- Changing air pressure. The pressure drop before a chinook is the most likely suspect. Some people seem to be sensitive to pressure changes, a bit like a human barometer.
- The inner ear. Animal studies suggest pressure changes can affect the inner ear and trigger pain, but this hasn’t been proven in people.
- More than one trigger. Because some people react the day before and others react to the wind itself, researchers think two different things may be going on.
You may also hear that chinooks cause headaches by changing “ions” in the air. That idea has been around for decades, but there isn’t good evidence for it.
What you can do
- Watch the sky and the forecast. A chinook arch, rising winds or a forecast jump in temperature is your early warning. The live West Lethbridge station shows the pressure and wind as they change.
- Keep a headache diary. Note the date, time and how bad it was, then compare it with the weather. After a few chinooks you’ll know whether you’re a “day before” person or a “windy day” person.
- Look after the basics. Chinook air is very dry. Drink water, keep regular meals and sleep, and don’t skip your coffee if you usually have it.
- Talk to your doctor or pharmacist if headaches are frequent or getting worse. If you know chinooks are a trigger, they can help you plan ahead. Migraine Canada also has trustworthy information.
This article is general information, not medical advice. A sudden, severe or unusual headache needs medical attention right away. For health advice any time, call Health Link at 811.
Tell us: do chinooks get you?
Vote in our chinook headache poll on West Lethbridge Weather and share your story. Do you feel it the day before, or once the wind hits? What helps you? We’ll share the results and some of your best tips in a follow-up.
Sources
- Cooke LJ, Rose MS, Becker WJ. Chinook winds and migraine headache. Neurology, 2000. Abstract on PubMed
- American Academy of Neurology news release on the study, 2000: EurekAlert
- Villaruz RH, Kuziek J, Sjonnesen K, et al. Chinook winds and migraine attack onset in children and adolescents. Headache, 2025. Full study (University of Calgary)
- Migraine Canada: migrainecanada.org