The science behind CROWN Plus: how maximum cooling works

Why we built a maximum-cooling roller

CROWN is our everyday roller, and it isn't just about the cold: menthol and camphor bring the cooling, and magnesium, Bing Pian, Chuan Xiong and German chamomile round it out, which is why it's made for everyday use.

For maximum cooling we wanted something different: a deeper cold that lasts longer. The obvious move is to add more menthol, but past a certain point, more menthol just adds sting instead of more cold.¹ So we built CROWN Plus around a different idea: several coolants, each doing one part of the job.

How your skin feels cold

Your skin senses cold through TRPM8, the skin's cold sensor, found on nerve endings that fire when the skin cools. Menthol switches on that same sensor chemically, so the nerve reports cold even though your skin temperature hasn't changed.²

A single coolant peaks and then fades as it evaporates or soaks in. Layer coolants that arrive at different speeds, and each one picks up where the last leaves off.

Three speeds of cool

The Triple Cool Complex

Menthol: the fast cold. Menthol is the anchor of the formula. Menthol and peppermint are the most studied topical ingredients for headache. In a double-blind crossover trial in people with migraine without aura, a menthol solution on the forehead and temples helped more people reach pain-free at two hours than a low-dose comparison,³ and an open-label study of a menthol gel reported encouraging results.⁴ Peppermint oil on the forehead and temples eased tension-type headache in a double-blind trial, performing on par with a standard dose of acetaminophen.⁵

Menthyl lactate: the steady cool. Made from menthol, it works on the same cold sensor at nearly the same strength, but it comes on more gently and lingers. That's why it has a long track record in flavors and skin care.⁶

Two odorless coolants: the long finish. Flavor chemists developed these to cool without menthol's hot edge or its smell, and lab testing shows they act cleanly on the cold sensor.⁷ One is about as strong as menthol, the other gentler, so together they carry the cold on after menthol has peaked.

Why the Triple Cool Complex

• More cold without more sting. Spreading the work across three speeds means no single coolant has to be pushed past comfortable.^1,7
• No added scent. The odorless coolants add cold without adding smell. Scent sensitivity during attacks is common in migraine, so extra cold that doesn't bring extra fragrance matters.
• Consistent batch to batch. Botanical oils change with every harvest. These coolants are made to a fixed standard, so every bottle feels the same.

Bing Pian, Chuan Xiong and Bai Zhi

CROWN Plus keeps the traditional Chinese headache herbs that set the CROWN family apart, and adds a third.

Bing Pian (borneol)

Bing Pian means "ice piece" in Mandarin, and it has a long history in Chinese medicine for its cooling feel. In CROWN Plus it adds its own clean cool on top of the Triple Cool Complex, bridging the modern coolants and the traditional herbs. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 122 people with pain after surgery, topical borneol eased pain more than placebo.⁸

Chuan Xiong (Ligusticum chuanxiong root oil)

Chuan Xiong is the most used herb in classical Chinese headache formulas. Its root oil gives CROWN Plus its warm, earthy herbal depth. In a meta-analysis of randomized trials, traditional Chuan Xiong formulas taken as teas and granules reduced how often migraine attacks came, how long they lasted and how severe they were.⁹

Bai Zhi (Angelica dahurica root oil)

Bai Zhi is new to the CROWN family. Chinese medicine pairs it with Chuan Xiong for headache at the front of the head so often that researchers have studied the two as a unit, and in an animal study Bai Zhi boosted uptake of Chuan Xiong's active compounds.¹⁰ In CROWN Plus it completes the herbal trio.

The supporting ingredients

A few ingredients are there for feel, scent and freshness rather than cold. We cover them in the quiet ingredients in CROWN Plus, but in short:

• Peppermint oil adds natural menthol and a bright mint note.
• Eucalyptus and spearmint round out the fresh, herbal scent.
• Bisabolol conditions the skin.
• Roman chamomile adds a soft, warm herbal note.
• Vitamin E helps keep the plant oils fresh.

Why a light oil base

CROWN uses a light oil base. CROWN Plus is water-free too, built on light MCT oil, the clear, odorless fraction of coconut oil. That choice shapes the rest of the formula.

Oil holds the cold longer. Unlike an alcohol roller that flashes off in seconds,¹¹ oil lets the coolants release over a longer window. MCT oil dissolves menthol-type ingredients well, stays stable on the shelf, stays liquid in a cold car and is gentle on skin.¹²

No water, no preservatives needed. Microbes need water to grow, so a water-free oil doesn't need preservatives. Both rollers are paraben-free.

Magnesium and camphor stay in CROWN. CROWN keeps 2 percent magnesium chloride for the muscular, neck-and-shoulder side of migraine, while CROWN Plus puts its weight on the coolants. Camphor gives CROWN the soft warmth under its cold, and CROWN Plus was designed to go straight to cold.

How to use CROWN Plus

Roll a thin line on your temples, forehead and the back of your neck. A little goes a long way, and you can reapply as needed.

Patch test on your inner forearm before first use, keep it away from your eyes, don't use it on broken skin, and don't use it on children under 2.

The box lists every ingredient in order, along with the lot number and the 24-month period-after-opening symbol. CROWN Plus is lavender-free, water-free, paraben-free, vegan and cruelty-free. Made by Cerebral Torque, a migraine education platform.

For the science-minded

Cold sensor potency. In a mouse TRPM8 assay, menthyl lactate activated the receptor at almost the same concentration as menthol.² Of the two odorless coolants, one is about as potent as menthol and the other roughly ten times weaker, which suits a long, gentle tail. An 18-compound comparison of cooling agents found the stronger one acts mainly on the cold sensor.⁷

Menthol trial. The crossover trial enrolled 35 people with migraine without aura; the higher menthol dose also did better on nausea and light sensitivity.³

Borneol. Mouse work in the same paper as the human trial pointed to TRPM8 as part of borneol's effect,⁸ and a separate lab study also found it activates the cold sensor.¹³

Chuan Xiong. The meta-analysis pooled 19 randomized trials with 1,832 patients.⁹

Frequently asked questions

Related reading

• CROWN vs CROWN Plus: which cooling roller is right for you
• The quiet ingredients in CROWN Plus
• Strongest migraine roll-on: a buyer's guide

CROWN and CROWN Plus are cosmetic cooling roll-ons, not medicines. Sensory descriptions come from our own use and customer feedback. These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. For external use only. Avoid contact with eyes and mucous membranes. Not for use on children under 2. If you are pregnant, nursing, or have a medical condition, talk to your healthcare provider before use. Study descriptions summarize published research on individual ingredients. This article is for general information and is not medical advice.