How do we get hiccups?Kendra Maynard Hickory, North Carolina Hickory is a city in Catawba County, North Carolina, United States. Hickory has the 162nd largest urban area in the United States. It is the economic, social, and cultural center of the Catawba River Valley. Renee Schoenborn Grand Rapids, Michigan “Grand Rapids” redirects here. For other uses, see Grand Rapids (disambiguation). Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 197,800. Dear Kendra and Renee: Under your lungs is a large, flat muscle called the diaphragm (DIE-uh-fram). This powerful muscle almost divides your body in half. The diaphragm contracts and expands as you breathe in and out. Sometimes the diaphragm will contract with a series of quick spasms. This sudden tightening draws in a rapid gulp of air. At the same time, your vocal cords close. The air rushing over the vocal cords makes them vibrate, causing the hiccup hiccup or hiccough, involuntary spasmodic contraction of the diaphragm followed by a sharp intake of air, which is abruptly stopped by a sudden, involuntary closing of the glottis (opening between the vocal cords); the consequent blocking of air sound. Anything that irritates the diaphragm can cause it to contract and give you the hiccups Hiccups Definition Hiccups are the result of an involuntary, spasmodic contraction of the diaphragm followed by the closing of the throat. Description . The more common causes are eating or drinking too fast, or being excited or tired. Most cases of hiccups stop on their own after a short amount of time. More stubborn cases can be helped by trying to break the cycle by taking a big drink of water. You can also try holding your breath or breathing into a paper bag for a few minutes. This increases the amount of carbon dioxide in your lungs, which tends to slow or stop the muscle contractions. (NEVER place a plastic bag over your mouth or head--you could suffocate suf·fo·cate v. 1. To impair the respiration of; asphyxiate. 2. To suffer from lack of oxygen; to be unable to breathe. suf .) |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion