HICCUPS are caused when the diaphragm muscle or actually the nerves to the diaphragm muscle are irritated due to to any cause ( sometime just a shift in nerve cell membrane ions)..
this causes the diaphragm to contract and creates what we know as hiccups
2007-01-04 03:38:49
·
answer #1
·
answered by qa k 3
·
0⤊
0⤋
Hiccups are bursts of inspiratory (breathing in) activity. The muscles we use when we take in a breath are the intercostal muscles situated between the ribs, and the diaphragm — a sheet of muscle below the lungs.
Most simple cases of hiccups come after eating or drinking too much or too quickly. The stomach, which is situated right below the diaphragm, becomes distended and irritates it. This will cause the diaphragm to contract, as it does when we breathe in.
Sometimes hiccups will occur because of a disturbance to the nerve pathways from the brain to the muscles involved. This explains why hiccups may occur with temperature changes or emotional situations. It is also the reason that a sudden shock can sometimes abolish an attack.
Persistent hiccups may signify problems in the brain, spinal cord or any of the structures around the diaphragm or chest wall.
Everyone has their own pet remedy for curing hiccups. Simply holding your breath is often effective.
2007-01-04 04:53:40
·
answer #2
·
answered by Cutie 4
·
0⤊
0⤋
"Hic!" You've just hiccuped for what seems like the tenth time since you finished your big dinner. Wonder where these funny noises are coming from? The part to blame is your diaphragm (say: die-uh-fram). This is a dome-shaped muscle at the bottom of your chest, and all hiccups start here.
The diaphragm almost always works perfectly. When you inhale, it pulls down to help pull air into the lungs. When you exhale, it pushes up to help push air out of the lungs. But sometimes the diaphragm becomes irritated. When this happens, it pulls down in a jerky way, which makes you suck air into your throat suddenly. When the air rushing in hits your voice box, you're left with a big hiccup.
Some things that irritate the diaphragm are eating too quickly or too much, an irritation in the stomach or the throat, or feeling nervous or excited. Almost all cases of the hiccups last only a few minutes. Some cases of the hiccups can last for days or weeks, but this is very unusual, and it's usually a sign of another medical problem.
You've probably heard lots of suggestions for how to get rid of hiccups, and maybe you've even tried a few. Holding your breath and counting to 10 is one way some people can get rid of their hiccups. Other people say that drinking from the "wrong" side of a glass of water is the way to become hiccup-free.
Putting sugar under your tongue might work, too. And maybe the most famous treatment - having someone jump out and scare you when you're not expecting it - helps some people wave good-bye to their hiccups.
2007-01-04 03:34:25
·
answer #3
·
answered by nm19822001 2
·
0⤊
1⤋
Why do we get hiccups?
When you hiccup, your diaphragm involuntarily contracts. (The diaphragm is a dome-shaped muscle that separates the chest cavity from the abdomen. It plays an extremely important role in breathing.)
This contraction of the diaphragm then causes an immediate and brief closure of the vocal cords, which produces the characteristic sound of a hiccup. What actually causes the hiccup is difficult to say - in most instances, there is no obvious cause.
Attacks of the hiccups seem to be associated with a few different things: eating or drinking too fast; being nervous or excited; or having irritation in the stomach and/or throat.
In some extremely rare cases, the underlying cause of hiccups can be pleurisy (inflammation of the membrane lining of the lungs and chest cavity), pneumonia, certain disorders of the stomach or esophagus, pancreatitis, alcoholism, or hepatitis. Any one of these conditions can cause irritation of the diaphragm or of the phrenic nerves that supply the diaphragm - it's the irritation that causes the hiccups.
Still, the cause of most attacks of the hiccups remains a mystery
... x o x o !
2007-01-04 03:34:40
·
answer #4
·
answered by ♥..::Amy::..♥ 3
·
0⤊
1⤋
A hiccup is an involuntary spasm of the diaphragm; typically this repeats several times a minute. The sudden rush of air into the lungs causes the glottis to close, creating the "hic" noise. A bout of hiccups generally resolves by itself, although many home remedies are in circulation to shorten the duration, and medication is occasionally necessary. By extension, the term "hiccup" is also used to describe a small and unrepeated aberration in an otherwise consistent pattern. The medical term is singultus.
While many cases develop spontaneously, hiccups are known to develop often in specific situations, such as eating too quickly, taking a cold drink while eating a hot meal, eating very hot or spicy food, laughing vigorously or coughing, drinking an excess of an alcoholic beverage, or electrolyte imbalance. Hiccups may be caused by pressure to the phrenic nerve by other anatomical structures, or rarely by tumors and certain kidney disease. It is reported that 30% of chemotherapy patients suffer singultus as a side effect to treatment. (American Cancer Society)
2007-01-04 03:33:37
·
answer #5
·
answered by Melli 6
·
0⤊
0⤋
hiccup usually occure when we are masticating.. that means eating. and while swallowing our food air falls into the food passage.causing us to hiccup.. usually holding your breath for 30 secs gives the air a chance to pass like the food you ate. or drinking water will push the air down as well and the only thing that you might need to take note on is how many times you need to hold your breath there has been times when I have had to do it at least 3 times 30 sec increments. but a 8 or 12 oz glass of water will usually do it...
So to sum it up... Hiccups are created by Air gettin in the passage ways while eating and sometimes drinking from a straw.. too but mostly eatting..
2007-01-04 03:37:51
·
answer #6
·
answered by Anonymous
·
0⤊
0⤋
Hiccups are bursts of inspiratory (breathing in) activity. The muscles we use when we take in a breath are the intercostal muscles situated between the ribs, and the diaphragm - a sheet of muscle below the lungs.
Most simple cases of hiccups come after eating or drinking too much or too quickly. The stomach, which is situated right below the diaphragm, becomes distended and irritates it. This will cause the diaphragm to contract, as it does when we breathe in.
2007-01-04 03:33:40
·
answer #7
·
answered by riesecup23 1
·
0⤊
1⤋
Am I psychic? I easily have been having a ton of deja Vus presently and now and back dream approximately what occurs the next day for the time of those Deja Vus i comprehend what is going to happen next Will I easily have a boyfriend in the subsequent month?? Will I grow to be a piece of the "in" crowd this 3 hundred and sixty 5 days?? What can i do which will carry approximately destiny existence sucess?? What do human beings see me as? Im sorry if I asked too lots...
2016-10-19 11:15:43
·
answer #8
·
answered by bridgman 4
·
0⤊
0⤋
Instead of waiting for people to answer, you could have had the answer in 5 minutes with a Google search on "why do we hiccup".
My question is...why don't more people use the tremendous amount of resource we have offered to us at our fingertips?
2007-01-04 03:34:30
·
answer #9
·
answered by S H 6
·
0⤊
1⤋
spasms of the diaphragm caused by irritation of the phrenic nerve from the brain that control breathing muscles. the spasm closes muscles in the back of the throat during inhalation.
2007-01-04 03:42:51
·
answer #10
·
answered by Debbie O 3
·
0⤊
0⤋