'Uh, brain freeze!' LB declared with a squint and a head slap immediately after sampling the cantaloupe from the Rita's Ice menu. He recovered quickly and was undeterred, trying the juicy pear next.
'What causes brain freeze?'
I had no idea. Is it a freezing and killing of brain cells? Were we one scientific discovery away from seeing a public service campaign with a 'this is your brain on ice cream' message? Is there a big frozen treat cover-up hiding the little known truth about the long-lasting affects of cold head?
It turns out that, no, though it is a trick of a different kind. That head pang you sometimes experience in the heat of summer after a bite or slurp of some delicious frozen treat is 'probably' a combination of reactions that begin with the cold bothering the nerves on the roof of your mouth followed by a squeezing of blood vessels and a subsequent rewarming--because, you know, it's hot.
I didn't make this up. You can hear about it on Discovery Health's Why? Tell Me Why: Ice Cream Headaches featuring Dr. Jason Rosenburg, Director of the Johns Hopkins Headache Center. Yes, this gastronomic phenom has actually been researched.
Dr. Rosenberg goes on to explain that there are lots of nerves in the face around the forehead and the eyes. The body can, apparently, be "tricked into thinking that that's the area under this painful assault."
But, rest assured, my friends, according to Dr. R., "Nothing bad is happening."
I repeat, nothing bad is happening.
Blood flow to the brain is not affected, nor does the brain actually freeze.
Dr. Rosenberg's advice? Take small bites and avoid the roof of your mouth.
Of course, some feel a doctor's advice is unnecessary. The following is from an editorial by Joseph Hulihan that was published in the British Medical Journal in 1997 (BMJ 314 : 1364; 10 May 1997):
"No treatment is usually required, and sufferers rarely seek medical attention... Most people arrive at such preventive measures without the advice of doctors. Ice cream abstinence is not indicated."
Whew, thank the gastronomic deities for that, right?
Rita's Ice Gelati is this week's gastronomic delight, if for no other reason than it sent me to my happy place. How could it not? Wild black cherry ice topped with chocolate-vanilla swirl custard.
(Photo of this Rita's cup, courtesy of LB. And now, LB, when that cutie AB asks you why? why? why? about brain freeze, you can tell him! You have a few years yet...)
'What causes brain freeze?'
I had no idea. Is it a freezing and killing of brain cells? Were we one scientific discovery away from seeing a public service campaign with a 'this is your brain on ice cream' message? Is there a big frozen treat cover-up hiding the little known truth about the long-lasting affects of cold head?
It turns out that, no, though it is a trick of a different kind. That head pang you sometimes experience in the heat of summer after a bite or slurp of some delicious frozen treat is 'probably' a combination of reactions that begin with the cold bothering the nerves on the roof of your mouth followed by a squeezing of blood vessels and a subsequent rewarming--because, you know, it's hot.
I didn't make this up. You can hear about it on Discovery Health's Why? Tell Me Why: Ice Cream Headaches featuring Dr. Jason Rosenburg, Director of the Johns Hopkins Headache Center. Yes, this gastronomic phenom has actually been researched.
Dr. Rosenberg goes on to explain that there are lots of nerves in the face around the forehead and the eyes. The body can, apparently, be "tricked into thinking that that's the area under this painful assault."
But, rest assured, my friends, according to Dr. R., "Nothing bad is happening."
I repeat, nothing bad is happening.
Blood flow to the brain is not affected, nor does the brain actually freeze.
Dr. Rosenberg's advice? Take small bites and avoid the roof of your mouth.
Of course, some feel a doctor's advice is unnecessary. The following is from an editorial by Joseph Hulihan that was published in the British Medical Journal in 1997 (BMJ 314 : 1364; 10 May 1997):
"No treatment is usually required, and sufferers rarely seek medical attention... Most people arrive at such preventive measures without the advice of doctors. Ice cream abstinence is not indicated."
Whew, thank the gastronomic deities for that, right?
Rita's Ice Gelati is this week's gastronomic delight, if for no other reason than it sent me to my happy place. How could it not? Wild black cherry ice topped with chocolate-vanilla swirl custard.
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