The Science Behind Brain Freeze: A Neuroscientist's Explanation.
Dr. Kris Rau, a neuroscientist with Virginia Tech’s School of Medicine, explains that a brain freeze is simply your body trying to regulate the temperature upstairs when it detects a cold sensation. The expansion of blood vessels in the roof of your mouth causes the pain for 30 seconds, but the good news is that sensation is harmless, even if it is unpleasant. The temperature of ice cream, or a slushie, or other cold treats we eat is not low enough to cause any harm like tissue damage.