Hiccups Knowledge

1. Stick Your Tongue Out

Sometimes, hiccups set in when you least expect them. They could happen when you are driving or working at your office desk. You can stick your tongue out for several seconds to stop the spasms if no one is looking.

While this might seem strange, it is a popular exercise among actors and singers. Its main job is to stimulate the vocal cords. However, it stops hiccups instantly.

Sticking your tongue out allows you to breathe smoothly. And this, in turn, calms the spasms that cause your hiccups.

2. Pop a Lollipop

Sticking your tongue out while everybody is watching can be tremendously discomforting. If you cannot do it, you will love the following remedy.

If you are experiencing occasional hiccups, there are many creative ways to stop them—for instance, specially formulated lollipops known as hiccupops help.

At first glance, this lollipop is like any other type of candy, but it is much more than that. The science behind it is straightforward. Typically, these annoying spasms will occur when specific nerves in your throat, mouth, are abdomen are irritated.

As a result, your brain sends a response signal to your diaphragm, telling it to contract. Hence the ‘hic’ reaction. Hiccupops have unique ingredients that restore your breathing to normal and reset that involuntary reflex.

The best part is that this lollipop stops hiccups in a few seconds while you enjoy the delicious taste of this lollipop.

3. Plug your Ears

Plugging your ears is another effective way to stop hiccups. When you get them, carefully stick a finger in each of your ears. Ensure that you do it simultaneously.

If you are uncomfortable plugging your ears, gently squeeze the soft part of your ear behind the earlobes. The objective is to signal the vagus nerve connected to your diaphragm. Once it receives the message, it relaxes, and the hiccups stop.

4. Gulp Some Water

A few sips of water from glass will quickly stop hiccups. It is a technique that works for both adults and children. So, if you are wondering how to stop hiccups fast, gulp some water in quick succession.

When swallowing the water, the rhythmic movement of your esophagus will quash the spasms in the diaphragm. If this technique is not working, take it a notch further by covering the top of your glass with a paper towel.

Drinking through the paper towel will make the challenge more difficult for your diaphragm. And as you struggle to force the water through the extra layer, your diaphragm will work harder. The good news is that this will ultimately end the hiccups.

Besides fresh water, a gripe of water can help ease baby hiccups. Usually, it is marketed as a treatment for tummy problems and colic, but parents can use it to stop hiccups.

5. Take Some Honey

Stir a spoonful of honey in some warm water. Put it behind the tongue and swallow it gently. The sweetness of the honey arouses the vagus nerve, which ends the hiccups.

If you don’t have access to honey, swallowing something sweet works similarly. For example, a spoonful of sugar could stop hiccups. Part of this is because the grains of sugar will irritate your esophagus.

Once this happens, the phrenic nerves may reset and stop the hiccups.

6. Drink Water with a Straw

This remedy combines two techniques that we previously discussed separately. It would be best to plug your ears with your fingers to do it successfully. Follow this up with drinking water with a straw.

Besides swallowing the water in a steady flow, you will squeeze the vagus nerve and stop the hiccups.

7. Breath into a Paper Bag

When looking for how to stop hiccupping, the chances are that you have come across the paper bag strategy. It revolves around breathing into a medium-sized paper bag. But in case you feel lightheaded, stop it immediately.

Breathing into a paper bag deeply and slowly raises your carbon dioxide levels. As a result, your diaphragm contracts deeply to draw in more oxygen. While this happens, the rhythm stops the hiccups.

Scientifically, this technique is yet to be proven, but people have been using it for a long time.

8. Suck on a Piece of Lemon

If you have lemons in the house, you can use them to stop hiccups. Take a lemon wedge, deep it in a non-alcoholic bitter, and suck on it. If you don’t have a non-alcoholic bitter, don’t sweat it because the lemon wedge will work perfectly.

9. Burp More Frequently

While most of these techniques are ideal for adults, you may wonder how to stop baby hiccups. If your baby tends to get these spasms frequently, burp your baby a couple of times when feeding. Usually, this strategy prevents hiccups from striking your little one.

However, if your baby is already experiencing hiccups, gently pat them on the back. Additionally, allowing them to suck on a pacifier could provide much-needed relief.

10. Hug Your Knees

As strange as it may sound, hugging your knees will relieve you from hiccups. Find a comfortable sitting position and fold your knees back towards your chest.

Hold your knees against your chest for a couple of minutes, and the hiccups will stop. When your knees tend to compress on your chest, the involuntary spasms emanating from your diaphragm will stop.

Common Triggers for Hiccups

Although there is no ultimate cause for hiccups, these spasms have a common trigger. These include;

• Eating quickly or excessively
• Feeling overwhelmingly excited or nervous
• Drinking alcohol or carbonated drinks excessively
• A sudden temperature change
• Stress

Hiccups will not automatically strike if you are in any of these situations. Moreso, research on the causes exact causes of these spasms is inconclusive.

How to Prevent Hiccups

The best way to deal with such a condition is to learn how to prevent it—changing when or how eating or drinking can play an integral role in preventing these spasms.

For instance, if you drink over five cans of carbonated drinks in a day, you will likely experience hiccups. The same case applies to drinking too much coffee before 9 am. Eating a lot of food ago could also be why hiccups keep striking.

The bottom line is that if your eating and drinking patterns are off, you might get hiccups more. And with a little bit of habit change, you could keep hiccups at bay.

When to See a Doctor

Hiccups normally resolve on their own after a while. If they persist for over 48 hours, that could signify an underlying health issue, and you should see a doctor. Also, if your hiccups tend to strike frequently, consult your GP.

Interesting Facts About Hiccups

Women are less likely to get hiccups than men. However, the reasons behind it are not clear—Nonetheless, infants hiccup more than adults.

What’s more intriguing is that hiccups also strike fetuses. Mothers who have had their babies biologically may sometimes remember this feeling.

The most extended hiccup lasted for a staggering 68 years. However, this was a rare case of a man named Charles Osborne. Moreover, hiccups only last for about 5 minutes; anything beyond it could signal other health problems.

Hiccups not only strike humans. Other mammals also experience these spasms. But humans get hiccups more than all the other mammals.

Most hiccups home remedies are not bullet proof. You might try a couple and fail miserably. If a particular strategy doesn’t work for you, move on to the next. You might eventually get something that works.

No one has produced adequate evidence as to why hiccups strike. You will most likely hear strange theories such as hiccups were meant for our gills. Or these spasms are a method that fetuses use to practice breathing once they are born.

Unfortunately, non of these theories are proven.

Stop Hiccups Instantly

As you can see, there are multiple remedies to stop hiccups. The only challenge is that some of these remedies may not augur well with you. In other circumstances, you might not be able to use some of these strategies.

Moreover, controlling baby hiccups can be a frustrating affair. Most children might be uncomfortable with some of the techniques listed above.

The good news is that hiccupops work all the time. And these lollipops come in different flavors and colors. If you are looking for a fun and practical way to stop hiccups, buy hiccupops today, and you will not regret it.