Pattern glare: why stripes and dense text bother people with migraine
Updated 2026-11-02
Quick answerHigh-contrast stripes around 3 cycles per degree, with equal stripe width and spacing, cause the most visual discomfort, and people with migraine are more susceptible. Lines of text form a similar pattern. Slightly lower contrast, larger text and line spacing reduce the effect; color helped some migraine participants in a 2013 study.
Evidence
- Wilkins' work: illusions and discomfort peak near 3 cycles/degree; correlated with headache frequency.
- Rows of text fall within the spatial-frequency range that produces pattern glare (J Neurol 2012).
- Headache 2013: color reduced illusions in migraine groups, but not one specific color.
On screens
- Migraine Mode lowers contrast slightly (90%) by default, not more, because very low contrast hurts legibility.
- Increase text size and line spacing in sites that allow it.
FAQ
What is pattern glare?
Discomfort and visual distortions caused by high-contrast striped patterns, more common in people with migraine.
Sources
- Wilkins A. [Review of pattern glare and visual discomfort from striped patterns]. Trends in Neurosciences, 1986 (PDF). Link
- Pattern glare: the effects of contrast and color. Frontiers in Psychology, 2015. Link
- Color and spatial frequency are related to visual pattern sensitivity in migraine. Headache, 2013. Link
- Susceptibility to pattern glare following stroke. Journal of Neurology, 2012. Link
Not a medical device and not medical advice. Migraine Mode is a screen-comfort tool: it does not diagnose, treat, cure or prevent migraine or any other condition, and it does not replace a doctor. Its settings are based on studies of light, colour, flicker, patterns and motion; the extension itself has not been clinically tested. When to see a doctor.