I just had an ice cream cone, and my brain felt like it was hit with an ice pick! But when I jump into a cold pool, my brain doesn’t seem to care. Why does eating cold stuff make my head hurt so much, but swimming in cold water doesn’t?
In: Biology
If it’s cold enough, your brain will[ absolutely care about being dropped into cold water](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_shock_response).
It’s the same thing happening but the other way. Brain freeze happens when your mouth tries to heat back up very quickly and the sudden change in blood vessel size causes a pain response, cold shock happens because your veins constrict quickly due to the cold and your heart goes into cardiac arrest trying to compensate.
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