Ever experienced a headache right after drinking a cold liquid very fast? Well, most people including me have. Doctors call this sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia. In simple terms, they describe it as a Brain-Freeze or a cold stimulus headache. Normally they last for less than five minutes so mostly go unnoticed but they do hurt.
This type of a headache can happen when one eats, drinks or inhales something cold for instance biting an ice-cream cone is a common trigger. Other frosty foods too exhibit the same effects too such as ice-pops and slushy frozen drinks. Scientists have also discovered that they occur when you suddenly expose your head to cold temperatures, such as by diving into cold water.
Should I see a doctor?
Because ice cream headaches quickly go away, there is no need to see a doctor.
Causes of ice cream headaches
As earlier shown, it is mostly felt when you:
Expose your head to sudden, or extreme cold or
By having something cold move across the roof of your mouth and the back of your throat, such as when you eat ice cream quickly or gulp a cold drink
Scientists are unsure of the exact cause of this kind of headache. One theory is that the cold temporarily alters blood flow in your nervous system, causing a brief headache. Blood vessels constrict to prevent the loss of body heat and then relax again to let blood flow rise, resulting in a burst of pain that goes away once the body adapts to the temperature change.
Risks factor
Ice cream headaches can affect anyone. But you might be more susceptible to ice cream headaches or have more severe ice cream headaches if you’re prone to migraines.
Prevention
• The best way to avoid getting ice cream headaches is to avoid cold foods, drinks or exposure to cold that causes them.
• Eat or drink cold drinks slowly to allow your mouth to get used to the temperature.
• Hold cold food or drink in the front part of your mouth and allow it to warm up before swallowing.