For cold drink lovers, a stick of ice cream and a bottle of iced drink can support the simplest happiness in summer.
When eating cold drinks, you may have had this experience: after swallowing a few sips quickly to relieve the heat, you soon start to have a headache, and sometimes even feel nauseous...
Why does a sip of cold drinks trigger the above reaction? " Life Times " interviews nutrition experts to answer your questions and summarizes a healthy "eating ice" strategy in summer.
Interviewed experts
Ma Guansheng, professor and director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Peking University China registered nutritionist Ma Yueqing
Eating cold drinks will really make people "go to head"
"Brain Freeze" is a This vivid term actually refers to the nerve pain in the head caused by eating a large amount of cold drinks.
In the 1980s, Western countries discussed similar cases and named them "ice cream headache ", also known as " cold stimulation headache ", and its scientific name is "sphenopalatine ganglion neuralgia".
When cold food suddenly enters the warm mouth, it causes strong stimulation to the mucosa, causing the blood vessels in the head and face to rapidly contract, causing spasm of the temporal arteries, which is then transmitted to the brain.
At this time, people will feel very painful in the middle of the forehead or near the temples, and some people may even feel nausea and vomiting.
Headache occurs quickly and briefly. Generally, it occurs within a few seconds after eating or drinking a cold drink quickly. The pain reaches its peak after 30 to 60 seconds, and the duration generally does not exceed 2 to 5 minutes. , there are also a few people. The headache will last longer.
Children and young people who like to eat cold drinks are more likely to suffer from migraines.
Headache, it may also be that the brain is protecting you
An experimental study from Harvard Medical School shows that eating cold drinks may activate thermoreceptors in intracranial blood vessels.
When you eat cold drinks, your brain will have the illusion that "it's cold". Since the brain is very sensitive to temperature, the human body will find ways to raise the intracranial temperature to the normal range at this time.
Then the blood vessels begin to expand, bringing more heat to the brain through blood circulation. In this process, normal tissue is squeezed due to the dilation of blood vessels, which activates the corresponding pain receptors, and headache occurs.
The tissues around the brain are sensitive to pain
Eating a large amount of cold drinks will not only cause cold stimulation headaches, but also stimulate the intestines, causing stomach cramps , reduced secretion of digestive juices, and causing indigestion, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, etc.
After a full meal, do not eat cold drinks immediately
After a full meal, food must be digested and absorbed by the stomach and intestines. It is decomposed into small molecular substances under the action of gastric acid and digestive enzymes . The digestive enzymes are at the normal temperature of the human body ( The activity is higher at 36℃~37℃).
After cold drinks enter the human body quickly, they will instantly lower the temperature of the gastrointestinal tract, reduce the activity of enzymes, stimulate the gastrointestinal tract to spasm and contract, weaken the intestinal digestion and absorption capacity of food, and at the same time, the blood vessels in the gastrointestinal tract contract rapidly, reducing blood flow. Reduced, affecting the transport of nutrients.
- People with weak gastrointestinal and poor digestion ability
Eating cold food after a full meal can easily cause gastrointestinal discomfort and diarrhea.
- If people with normal digestive function
often eat cold food after a full meal, it may also induce gastrointestinal diseases and cause symptoms such as abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and cold sweats.
In addition to after a full meal, you should also be careful when eating cold drinks on an empty stomach and after strenuous exercise:
On an empty stomach, cold food can easily irritate the gastric mucosa; strenuous exercise can increase body temperature and open pores. At this time, eating a large amount of cold drinks will strongly stimulate the digestive tract. , causing violent gastrointestinal peristalsis and abdominal discomfort.
Scientific guide to eating ice in summer
How to "prevent" a series of chain reactions caused by cold drinks? Nutrition experts remind you of 4 points to make eating ice more comfortable every time.
Control each intake
The best way to prevent cold stimulation headaches is to avoid known cold stimulation, such as not eating large amounts of cold food and drinks quickly in a short period of time.
Try not to eat more than two ice creams or popsicles at one time, and don’t drink more than half a bottle of iced bottled drinks at one time.
Hold it for a while before swallowing
When drinking liquid cold drinks, it is best to drink them slowly in small sips. When eating solid cold drinks, you can hold them in the front of your mouth first, wait until they are close to body temperature, and then swallow them slowly to reduce the impact on the cerebral blood vessels, throat and respiratory tract. Stimulate.
Eat between meals
For most people, it is best to eat cold food between meals, and do not eat too much; for example, eat cold drinks at least 1 hour after a meal.
Special groups of people should eat with caution
For example, patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, including hypertension, coronary heart disease, atherosclerosis, etc. The ability of blood vessels to self-regulate is relatively poor, and "sudden cooling" will cause sudden contraction of blood vessels. , may cause discomfort.
Finally, I would like to remind everyone that if you feel a headache or discomfort when eating cold drinks, you can press your tongue against the roof of your mouth to help speed up the return of the roof of your mouth to normal temperature.
You can also cover your mouth and nose with your hands and breathe quickly to increase the flow of hot air into the palate and relieve headaches. However, if nausea, vomiting, or headache persists, seek medical attention promptly. ▲
Editor of this issue: Xu Menglian
Copyright statement: This article is original to "Life Times" and any unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.
