What's Up with Hiccups?

Have you ever had the hiccups? I bet you have. You’re sitting there minding your own business and then, “Hic!”, they start. It makes it hard to swallow and hard to talk. Sometimes they make you feel funny. You might even start to laugh. Most of the time they only last a few minutes. But how do they happen? Hiccups happen when we get sudden involuntary (that means we can’t control it) contractions of the diaphragm. The diaphragm is a muscle that helps us breath. It stretches across your body just under your rib cage. It is a divider between the lungs, and your stomach and intestines. It usually helps you breathe, but when you get hiccups, it kind of just starts doing its own thing.  It jumps every few seconds and causes the funny sound we all know.

 So what causes hiccups? Some common triggers are:

Eating too much or too fast

Drinking carbonated drinks

Swallowing extra air

Feeling excited or stressed.

 If babies swallow to much air when they are drinking from a bottle, they can get hiccups.

What can someone do to stop them? Well, I’m glad you ask. Here are some ways to help get hiccups to stop.

Hold your breath for a short time

Sip a glass of cold water

Breathe into a paper bag

Swallow a small spoon of sugar

Most sources say that breathing in a little more carbon dioxide into your lungs is the best way to get them to stop. That’s why holding your breath or blowing in a paper bag usually helps. For me, just relaxing often helps. The only time you have to worry about them is if it lasts for days. Then you may need to see a doctor. But that’s pretty rare.

I hoped you liked learning about hiccups.

 

Until next time,

Love Papaw

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source: https://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/a19932525/hiccups