Why people get brain freeze
It’s never fun when you are enjoying ice cream or a frozen drink, only to encounter a brain freeze. Here’s the biology behind a brain freeze and how you can cut it short next time you experience one.
How brain freeze is caused
1. Eating too fast: Eating at a fast pace can increase your chances of an ice cream headache. Gulping a frozen drink quickly can also do the same thing. Even if you are thirsty, it is important to remember to slow down when you are enjoying a slushie or smoothie.
2. Prone to migraines: Brain freezes can happen to anyone but research shows that they are more common in migraine sufferers.
How brain freeze occurs
When cold hits the roof and back of your mouth, it is a shock to the system. Blood vessels constrict and limit blood flow and then quickly expand to let blood flow increase.
This rapid contraction and expansion is believed to signal to pain receptors in the mouth that there is a problem.
Dr Oz explained to Good Housekeeping, “The receptors send a distress signal to the trigeminal nerve, whose job it is to relay sensations in the mouth and face to the brain.”
“Your body's favourite "Stop doing that!" signal is pain, and your cold-shocked system delivers that full-on, often to the front of your head or the area around your temples.”
Brain freeze can last for a few seconds or a few minutes.
How to shorten brain freeze
When you have a brain freeze, it is best to warm the roof of your mouth. You can do this by pressing your tongue to the roof of your mouth or drinking warm water.
Image credits: Getty Images