What Causes Hiccups?

So, what do we know about what causes hiccups? Well, the physical reason is an involuntary spasm of the diaphragm. This causes a rapid intake of air which causes a flap in the back of your throat - the epiglottis - to close. That is what makes the 'hic' sound. You have no control over this happening. Usually hiccups eventually go away of their own accord.

Possible causes

Although there are no definitive medical reasons as to what causes hiccups, there are quite a few causes which have become generally accepted as possible reasons. They include the following:

Drinking alcoholEating a large amountSneezing, coughing or laughingExhaustion

How to stop them

There are no proven ways in which to stop them, but there are plenty of well known ideas as to how to help them dissipate.

Hold your breathHave someone give you a shockGulping down some waterEating something sweet such as sugar or honeyDistraction techniques such as saying the alphabet backwards or concentrating on something difficult

Are they serious?

In almost every case, hiccups are not serious. It is medically accepted that they are of no use to the human body and do not cause any damage. They normally go away on their own within a few minutes or a few hours. In very rare cases, hiccups can go on for an extended period of time (weeks or months) and then these may require medical intervention in the form of muscle relaxants.

As you can see, some of the commonly believed causes are lifestyle based. So if you find you are constantly getting bouts of them, you can easily try to change any bad habits and therefore you might get rid of the trigger which causes hiccups.