This headache is due to a very specific cause and has a direct short-term consequence that dissipates after a few seconds. It usually happens, above all, when we are very thirsty, we grab the first cold drink we find in our fridge and drink it quickly. It is at this moment that we feel a kind of puncture, very brief and very intense, which tends to occur in the central area of the forehead and is extremely annoying. Among the studies that have been done in this regard, it has been concluded that around a third of the female population suffers from this ailment, a figure that increases to 70% in regular migraine patients.
Cold Food Headache Causes
The main cause that unleashes this pain lies in the rapid contraction of the capillaries present in our palate when touched by food that is very cold. This fact causes a decrease in the speed of the blood stream to dilate again abruptly and instantaneously. This sudden change in the behavior of the vessels is detected by the pain nerves which, in turn, rapidly transmit the information to the brain.
This explanation directly links this type of ailment with migraines, since these are produced precisely due to vasodilation. The technical name of this process is known as sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia and, at present, it is perfectly defined and studied thanks to specialists in the field. The first pains begin about ten seconds after ingestion, to give way to the peaks of greatest discomfort between thirty and sixty seconds and come to an end after a duration of approximately ninety seconds.
The best way to avoid this type of headache is to try to avoid cold food touching the palate in the first instance. If we keep the aforementioned drink or food in our mouths for a few seconds to warm it up slightly, we will ensure that swallowing it does not cause the dreaded contraction of the capillaries.