We explain the science behind a brain freeze | Nightly News: Kids Edition

[Music] coming up beat the heat my question is what is a heatwave with temperatures sizzling in parts of the country what you need to know to stay cool and be safe also ahead brain freeze we'll explain the science behind an ice cream headache then meet Beacon and buoy the country's very first canine lifeguards go yeah plus helping hand we'll introduce you to these kids who are mowing lawns to help the elderly and those in need I look forward to doing this over and over again because I love more lives and I love helping the community and Thrill Ride come along as we scream our way through the history of one popular ride the roller coaster I like the feeling about how you like when like how you go down like that like steep drop and then like your stomach drops I feel like that's like everyone's favorite feeling about it this is NBC Nightly News kids edition welcome back to Nightly News Kids edition it is great to be with you on a Saturday morning I'm here on the West Coast coming to you from Universal Studios Hollywood which is owned by our parent company NBC Universal we've got a really fun lineup ahead with a summer theme including how to build a perfect sand castle plus a little later on we can't wait to tell you all about these dogs who are part of one lifeguard team in Maine but first let's begin with the summer weather parts of the country have been experiencing some sizzling temperatures recently and it got us thinking just what exactly is a heat wave our good friend Dylan Dreyer explains [Music] the heat is on my question is what is a heatwave my name is Charlie my question is what is a heatwave that's a good question a heat wave is a period of unusually hot weather that typically lasts three or more days the temperatures have to be above average for the area that you live in for example a few days of 95 degree weather in a place like Vermont is considered a heat wave but wouldn't be one in Arizona why well that's because Arizona usually experiences those high temperatures did you know heat waves are generally the result of Trapped air as opposed to cycling around the globe it simply stays put and warmth like the air inside an oven [Music] well that's humidity humidity is the amount of water vapor in the air if there is a ton of water vapor in the air then the humidity will be high so when it's really humid outside it can make you feel wet and sticky desert areas usually have low humidity tropical regions usually have higher humidity hot and humid weather can also lead to storms the more heat and humidity the wetter and stronger the storm so when the summer heats up what can you do to cool off and stay safe first remember to stay hydrated and drink lots of fluids what you drink drinking before you even feel thirsty so that means as soon as you get up in the morning and you know you're going to be spending a lot of time outside just start drinking water you can spray it you can also play in it think playing in a pool or running through a sprinkler you can also eat water yep you heard me you can eat water in the form of salads and fruit and popsicles also wear cool clothing and light colors think light and loose and limit your activity outside if it's really hot more than 90 degrees outside kind of don't recommend spending more than 30 minutes at a time outside and when you are outside make sure to try to try to stay in the shade if you can and try to stay inside between the hours of 11 and 2. that's when the sun is strongest and when it comes to heat exhaustion and heat stroke doctors say to look for these signs some of the earliest signs of heat exhaustion you know would be feeling kind of tired um maybe you might feel a little bit achy like your muscles could feel a little bit sore your skin might start to feel kind of like kind of damp and cool once your skin starts to feel really dry and hot that's when we get really concerned about something called a heat stroke which can be much much more serious so remember you can beat the Heat following the doctor's orders and don't forget your sunscreen Dylan thanks very much great explanation plus speaking of cooling off if you're like me one of my favorite treats to eat during the summer is ice cream but sometimes eating it can cause a headache or what we sometimes call Brain Freeze we asked our good pal Dr John Torres to explain why that happens we all love ice cream but some of us experience a short really painful headache wow when we eat it too fast all of us fancy doctors have a complicated name for this snow Palatine ganglioneralgia and some others call it a cold stimulus headache but it's just another name for brain freeze or ice cream headaches and it's your body's way of reacting to something really cold here is what scientists believe is happening when we eat ice cream or something cold it hits the roof of our mouth called the upper palate the cold then triggers the nerve that lets you feel Sensations in the front of your head called the trigeminal nerve that nerve then sends a signal to your brain that says hey this is way too cold so to warm the area our bodies pump extra blood to the roof of your mouth and during this process our blood vessels expand even in the brain that quick change in blood vessel size causes sudden pain lasting for about 20 to 30 seconds but brain freeze is still a scientific mystery because not everyone gets them as a matter of fact only about half of us get these types of headaches but if you do get an ice cream headache here are some tips you can use to ease that pain people throbbing first remove the cold food then take your thumb and push it onto the roof of your mouth kind of like this you're trying to warm that area up as quickly as possible you can also try drinking warm water but remember this pain will go away pretty quickly on its own so the best thing to do is slow down when eating cold food and avoiding the dreaded ice cream headache all together because I won't let a little brain freeze stop me from enjoying my favorite flavor some classic vanilla and it shouldn't stop you either Dr John Torres with that terrific explanation thanks very much now let's turn to our inspiring kids series some young people across the country are lending a helping hand to those who might be struggling by doing one simple chore mowing a lawn for some kids a weekly chore has turned into a challenge a 50-yard challenge to be exact this is my first time like helping people out and it made me like it made me feel happier started in 2016 by Rodney Smith Jr raising men and women Lawn Care challenges kids to mow 50 Lawns for free in their Community to help the elderly disabled single parents and Veterans most the people that we move for they can't afford it so when we can come mow the lawn for free that now frees them up now they can use the funds for food medication and other things they really need for brothers Lamar and recuevas Knight this challenge became a part of their everyday life everything that goes around comes around so if you're doing something good to put into the world and it's like it's gonna come around one day and be like hey this is your blessing you the brothers were first introduced to the program when they were on the receiving end of the service as young kids and then decided to pay it forward they completed their 50-yard challenge their first summer volunteering but the work became a passion lasting years I have a passion helping people I'm giving back to like people though like those that actually need it we caught up with 12-year-old Christopher Moore on his first day of taking part in the challenge helping out Francis Helton with her lawn people like myself it's it really I mean I couldn't do it myself it really helped me quite a bit and I just appreciate their generosity I look forward to doing this over and over again because I love more lives and I love helping the community out with more than 4 000 kids participating in the U.S and around the world Rodney gifts each kid who completes their 50-yard challenge with a brand new mower weed whacker and blower thanks in part to donations it's not just moving Lawns you actually building relationships and getting to know each and every one of these people building relationships helping teach kids about the importance of giving back it's just good to see a smile on people's faces and know that you're helping out the community we did a wonderful job just absolutely great [Music] all right time now for our Pop Quiz the question which bird can fly backwards a hummingbird B Cardinal or C the owl I'll give you a few seconds to think about it okay time's up the answer is a hummingbird the hummingbird is the only species of bird that is able to fly backwards for a significant amount of time in fact hummingbirds also have the ability to fly forward backwards straight up and down or to remain suspended in the air thanks to the unique architecture of its wing structure this benefits hummingbirds in a few different ways like in mid-flight hummingbirds can stop to investigate flowers and other sources of food it's kind of like kind of like Nature's helicopter right just ahead dog lifeguards that's right we're in Maine with Beacon and buoy good job deacon plus how to build the best sand castle what you need to know and buckle up the history of roller coasters bumps Thrills at all welcome back to Nightly News Kids edition happy Saturday everybody we want to head now to the beach in Maine where two four-legged additions to the Lifeguard staff are making a big splash let's get details now from our good friend Kristen Dahlgren when it's hot they call it the dog days of summer so this Beach in Maine is taking that quite literally go meet Beacon and Bowie the first and only lifeguard dogs in the U.S people love seeing the dogs here they do Patrol the beach with a lifeguard so that people do interact with them they are part of the staff veteran lifeguard Greg Wilford says he got the idea of using water rescue dogs from Italy and work with the American Academy of canine water rescue to put these pups on patrol here at Scarborough Beach State Park I have these guys being trained as second responders now so their job will be to follow the first responder into the water and pull in who was ever out there in the water back with their lifeguard so they'll have a lifeguard with them at all times what's the benefit of having a dog do that she can pull in three to five people at a time wow it's another tool that we add to the beach and we found it to be pretty successful the breed called Newfoundlands are known to be strong swimmers good job Beacon what makes these dogs so great at this a lot of water rescue dogs aren't new fees they're Labs they're Golden's they're they can be any type of dog if they if they're good swimmers but the new fees their paws are big and they don't swim the dog paddle they swim a modified breaststroke so their arms go out to the side and they use that to pull themselves in they've been known through history to be able to go in and save people let's go Beacon undergone both land and water training and continue to take part in Daily life-saving drills including on the back of a jet ski they need to recognize what their job is so when they see that the person is in the water they will both accelerate off the jet ski and go to the person in the same when they're making a swimming rescue it's heavy work for them to go through those waves it is you know I look at it that this is the first place that they've been lifeguards on a public beach they're written into the rescue procedures and I do see it down the road where these dogs are all over beaches in the United States with a first responder a second responder they need the help the reward when they get out of the water is play this is it they want to get this tug a little fun go get it Bud Beacon and Bowie have yet to make a real rescue but Greg is confident they have all the skills to help save lives and the reaction here has been incredible it's been really positive especially from a water safety they're really cute I think it's cool watch them jump in the water so it really just enhances like the environment around here which makes everyone happy do you think people on this beach are safer thanks to these guys yeah I think especially that public aspect of just being able to educate people especially kids now we're able to educate kids and parents good job summer vacation with a side of learning and some super cute Lifesavers [Music] Kristen thanks looks like they're doing a good job there on the beach well speaking of the beach it's a tradition enjoyed by kids and grown-ups every summer but just what does it take to build a sand castle and create a sand Masterpiece our friend Aaron McLaughlin hits the beach to find out a day at the beach typically includes Sun Surf and this when I go to the beach I like to build sand castles and I'm building a sand castle with my cousins building sand castles is a popular summer tradition awesome I love working on sandcastles especially with my family [Music] in Belmar New Jersey many families took part in the 36th annual Sandcastle building competition Belmar is a community town and we want people to come to the beach and have a good time we do it every year for the sand castle contest and I've won a lot of first place trophies for this so I have a good feeling today I'm eight years old and I've been doing the sand castle contest since I was like three these sand castles are amazing it just makes me feel excited to build the entries included everything from food to animals to the spirit of Christmas and more I'm building a watermelon I'm building a pizza we're making SpongeBob and there was no lack of creativity Moana and the face is made out of [Music] the staple for two not everyone took home a trophy but the memories made here are built to last spending time together and making memories at the beach all summer it feels amazing it's super fun and it's cool to see other people's like what they make so how can you build your own sand sculpture or sand castle worthy of a king and queen we asked an expert start with a big pile dig a hole down the center get some ocean water dump it in now you got a big pile the first thing is they fill the it up with sand and get it packed real tight you need some kind of form and we're going to just do all this with just a bucket and the shovel so you don't need to take a lot of toys to the beach this is plenty so just pick it up put it in there punch it down as hard as you can pack it down real hard with your hand when it's all done you want to look like that so now try and lift the bucket off perfect grab your shovel everybody got a shovel we're going to put a little plus sign on top of the tower think of that as a piece of pie and everybody wants to get the same size piece of pie so you want to just draw a line there and a line there so that it's four even pieces there you go so now we got a plus sign on top the reason is we want to remember where the middle is is we start carving sand away we want to go in an angle and put a point on top of that bucket we turned over and we're going to do that on all four sides we get a little lower put another Tower join them together like we did here with some sand to make a roof and just work your way down into the pile my suggestion for kids think about how long can you sit still and do something if you make a pile this big it would take me probably a whole day to turn this into a castle so if you go to the beach make a pile based on how long you want to spend the other thing look at the tideline the best time to bake a sand castle is when The Tide is High and it's going out so it's the Lifeguard ask your mom to get her phone out and check the tide if it's high tide and it's going out you've got all day to carved before the tide comes in the wreck your work if it's already low tide coming in then you want to get a little bit behind where the tide line is and that's usually where the sand gets from being real soft from where the Tide's coming in to where it's kind of fluffy back up a couple feet and then you know the tide won't wreck your work that's about it work your way down the pile and uh slow down so next time you hit the beach don't forget to pack a shovel a bucket and your imagination Erin thanks very much finally at amusement and theme parks across the country and around the world there's one popular attraction that promises lots of Thrills we're talking about the roller coaster but did you ever wonder how this ride started rolling into history our pal Gotti Schwartz takes a look [Music] [Applause] [Music] ride on a roller coaster I like the feeling about how you like when like how you go down like that like steep drop and then like your stomach drops I feel like that's like everyone's favorite feeling about it I usually go on like the medium-sized ones nothing too big [Music] I like the scary ones the most I always think it's really scary but then uh it's okay at the end nowadays these thrill rides are usually really popular during summer months but did you know the earliest roller coasters were actually freezing cold the first roller coasters weren't actually roller coasters at all they're getting rolled and they I mean they only kind of coasted they're actually Russian Ice slides in the 17th century in 17th century Russia people built giant slides out of ice then sent Riders down on sleds and in the early 1800s the French brought that icy concept over to France adding Rolling Wheels to account for the warmer climate which is where the term roller coaster came from in the 1870s the mock chunk Switchback Railway was created out of an old mining rail car in Pennsylvania and for just five cents passengers could Coast down the tracks at a whopping six miles an hour then in 1884 the first modern roller coaster was designed by a Lamarcus a Thompson it was called the Switchback Railway and debuted at Coney Island in Brooklyn New York the original Switchback Railway closed down in the 1930s but Luna Park and dinno's Wonder Wheel at Coney Island still operate today with rides for kids of all ages the kitty coaster was small it was like a dragon it only took like around 11 seconds for it to be completed but I found it exhilarating also one thing to make fair is that if you're if you have a hat hold on to it we went in like the little kids section over there yes I does the dragon one he screamed like a tie like [Music] they were faster than ever before some even go upside down like steel Vengeance at Cedar Point in Sandusky Ohio did you know the fastest roller coaster in the world is called formula Rosa which goes a whopping 149 miles an hour at the Ferrari World Abu Dhabi tallest roller coaster is King dakai Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey which climbs to 456 feet in the air that's as tall as the Great Pyramid of Giza the oldest roller coaster still running today is called a leap the dips at Lakemont Park in Pennsylvania which first opened in 1902 making it over 120 years old and nowadays there are all kinds of safety precautions in place including height requirements so this means you might need to wait until you're tall enough to ride some of the biggest coasters at your favorite Park these are designed to be as safely as possible so as many people as possible can enjoy them safely height restrictions while they're not the most fun for kids under a certain height or adults shorter adults under a certain height they're all designed with your safety in mind I went like on this really high roller coaster it was was really scary because it went like almost straight down and my me and my me and my friends were like that were hunched over because it went so fast I feel like really really proud I feel like I could do it again like a thousand more times but if you find yourself on a roller coaster this summer be sure to buckle up enjoy the ride remember where it all started [Music] all right Gotti thanks so much so much fun well that's going to do it for us parents just a reminder if your child has a question about any Topic in the news feel free to email a video to us at Nightly News kids at nbcuni.com and we'll try to answer them in an upcoming episode you can also follow us on Instagram at nightly kids and just a program note you can catch a new episode of Nightly News Kids edition every Thursday on nbcnews.com and YouTube and streaming on the weekends on NBC news now thanks for watching everyone remember to take care of yourself and each other have a great weekend foreign [Music] thank you

Channel: NBC News

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Length: 24min 46sec (1486 seconds)

Published: Sat Jul 15 2023