Can holding your breath or startling stop hiccups?The truth behind these myths

Everyone has experienced hiccups. Appears suddenly, for no apparent reason, lasts for a few minutes, then disappears, just as suddenly, Or whether some of the popular techniques for eliminating it are applied, such as drinking water, holding your breath, or administering an electric shock.

Hiccups occur due to the involuntary movement of the diaphragm, which is located just below the lungs and marks the boundary between the chest and abdomen. That is, a spasm occurs every time we take a breath, causing the vocal cords to close and the diaphragm to contract out of rhythm, causing a small amount of air to reach the lungs, which is the characteristic sound of hiccups.

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Although common among all people, Science has not found the reason why the muscles involved in breathing are not coordinated with the diaphragm. On the other hand, unlike other reflexes such as coughing, hiccups do not have any physiological or protective function, according to the Spanish Association of General Practitioners and Family Physicians.

Why do hiccups occur?

Although in most cases, hiccups usually occur for no apparent reason, Some behaviors may alter the normal function of the diaphragm and ultimately cause hiccups.these are some of the most common:

• Overeating Eating too quickly can put your health at risk.
• anxiety situationtension or pressure.
• Having a medical condition such as pneumonia or pleurisy.
• Metabolic disordersgastric irritation, reflux.
• take some medicineExamples include anesthetics, Parkinson’s disease medications, or chemotherapy.
• drink carbonated drinks Or a lot of alcohol.

Classification of hiccups

Such involuntary movements are classified as Sort by duration:

1. sharp: Also called temporary hiccups, they usually last no more than 48 hours.
2. persistent: It can last for more than 48 hours and up to a month.
3. Tricky: If it persists for more than two months, this is one of the conditions where it is recommended to see a doctor.
4. Frequency: Attacks are short in duration but repeated frequently.

Homemade tricks to get rid of hiccups effectively

Hiccups can become annoying if they last for a long time, so Most people turn to home remedies to stop their diaphragm from beating, However, they don’t know if these actually work.

One of the most common is to hold your breath for a few seconds, which increases the amount of carbon dioxide in your blood. This will eventually suppress the spasm, so it’s actually an effective technique, just like breathing into a paper bag.

Although it is effective in most cases, researchers have not determined why, and some Hypotheses suggest this is a way to distract the body because it focuses on the increase in carbon dioxide rather than cramping,

They even wondered whether low levels of carbon dioxide were the cause of the hiccups.

In panic situations, there is no evidence to support the effectiveness of this technique, however, according to the Department of Otolaryngology at New York University Medical Center. Sometimes this works because the brain focuses on the fear and no longer focuses on the contraction of the diaphragm.