Individuals who experience migraines in middle age may have an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s or other movement disorders later in life. The study, which was published in the September 17, 2014 online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, indicates that those suffering from migraine with aura can have twice the risk of developing Parkinson’s.

Study author Ann I. Scher, PhD, with Uniformed Services University in Bethesda, MD, and a member of the American Academy of Neurology, said in a statement, “Migraine is the most common brain disorder in both men and women.” She continued, “It has been linked in other studies to cerebrovascular and heart disease. This new possible association is one more reason research is needed to understand, prevent and treat the condition.”

A total of 5,620 people between the ages of 33 and 65 participated in the study and were followed for 25 years. When the study began, 3,924 participants did not have headaches, while 1,028 had headaches without migraine symptoms and 238 had migraine with no aura, while 430 had migraine with aura. Later in the study, investigators determined whether participants had any symptoms of Parkinson’s, had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s or had symptoms of restless legs syndrome (RLS).

Results from the study indicate that individuals who had migraine with aura were over twice as likely to be diagnosed with Parkinson’s as opposed to those with no headaches. In total, 2.4 percent of individuals with migraine with aura had the disease, in comparison to 1.1 percent without headaches.

According to the Migraine Research Foundation, approximately 18 percent of women and six percent of men in the U.S., or 36 million total, suffer from migraines in the U.S.