How best to get rid of hiccups?
What are hiccups
Hiccups are spasms of the diaphragm, followed by sudden closure of the glottis (the opening between the vocal cords), which temporarily stops the inflow of air. They can result from stress, excitement, stomach irritation, toxins, temperature changes, and other triggers.
The root cause is irritability of the phrenic nerves along the spinal column – these nerves control the diaphragm.
Sometimes hiccups go away within a few minutes, and sometimes they last a long time. The longest-term sufferer known was an American pig farmer who hiccup from 1922 to 1987.
Hiccup Remedies and Treatment
Hiccups often resist the most ingenious treatment methods, so it’s good to have several options in mind. You can try standing on your head, or swallowing crushed ice dry bread, or drinking a glass of water rapidly. Another remedy is to make ginger tea and add honey, then sip it for ten minutes. Some people swear by putting a teaspoon of sugar or honey on the back of the tongue and swallowing it slowly.
One remedy I’ve never had a chance to try involves drinking from a glass of water with a spoon in it while touching the end of the spoon to one ear.
Another is asking a good friend to shout “boo” unexpectedly and scare you into breathing evenly.
My favorite method is to breathe in and out of a paper bag held over the nose and the mouth. This raises the carbon dioxide level of the blood, calming the phrenic nerves and diaphragm. (Don’t use a plastic bag, though, because it can cling to your nostrils.) Keep breathing into the paper bag until the hiccups stop, or you feel uncomfortable.
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