Ever gone on an exciting outdoor trip, sipping on your favourite drink – when suddenly, a sharp pain enters the inner parts of your head right up into your brain?
Yep, this is known as brain freeze.
According to a reputable health and wellness publication, Cleveland Clinic, brain freeze occurs when your body detects a coldness entering your mouth or throat. To warm up the area, blood vessels then expand and contract and this causes instant pain that can be felt in the head.
Furthermore, many things could have resulted in this happening, some may include drinking ice water, ice cream, and sipping on a slush drink.
The feeling is usually unbearable and can last up to 30 seconds before dying down.
In addition to this sources such as Harvard Health and Virginia Tech News notes that you do not have to be concerned that you will have brain damage after experiencing this ordeal.
“Although pain is highly unpleasant, it is your brain’s natural way of making sure that we protect our body, even though in this case a temporary cold stimulus is not going to cause any actual damage. A ‘brain freeze’ is not harmful and should go away within a few seconds to a minute or so,” explains Virginia Tech News.
It is useful to note that there are things you can do to soothe pain and speed up the recovery process.
The health and wellness publication Healthline and several others say that this can be done from the comfort of your home by lifting your tongue to the roof of your mouth and warming the insides of the area.
“The heat from your tongue will transfer heat and energy to your sinuses behind your nose, which will then warm the nerve bundles that cause brain freeze. Keep your tongue firmly against the roof of your mouth until you feel the pain start to dissipate.”
Also see: Healthy benefits of resting in a sauna
