10 Unbelievable Ways to Get Rid of Hiccups
10 Unbelievable Ways to Get Rid of Hiccups
The first 3 sets always come as a surprise.
However, anything more than that is usually disturbing and annoying.
(does this give you any clue?)
Well, they are sounds that can escape from your mouth without warning —hiccups.
We’ve all experienced hiccups one time or the other (if you don't get hiccups put your hands in the air).
Hiccups can happen to anyone at any age — adults, children, new born babies and even foetus in the womb.
Ever asked yourself, where do hiccups come from? Why and how do they happen? (don't look too far).
Prepare to be amazed as we explore the unbelievable tactics to stop hiccups on their track. Lets dive in!
What Does it Mean to Have Hiccups?
The medical term for hiccups is “singultus.”
Hiccups are repetitive, uncontrollable, spasmodic contraction of the muscle, at the base of the lungs (diaphragm) — followed by the rapid closure of the vocal cords.
The spasm in your diaphragm causes your vocal cords to suddenly close, producing a “hic” sound which then results in sudden inhalation and ends with abrupt closure of the glottis.
The diaphragm is the muscle that separates your chest from your stomach area and it also regulates breathing.
Your diaphragm contracts and moves downwards when your lungs take in oxygen and it relaxes and moves upward when your lungs release carbon dioxide.
Hiccups happen very quickly and you’ll usually return to normal within minutes to a couple of hours without treatment.
Hiccups are more common in men, they also tend to have hiccups for a longer period.
Babies also often get hiccups, which is a normal part of their development.
However, in babies, hiccups can sometimes disrupt feeding and sleeping.
If hiccups occur during feeding, try:
Burping the baby
Calming the baby
Changing the baby’s position
However, frequent hiccups in a baby could also be a sign of a medical condition.
Parents or caregivers should speak with a doctor if hiccups occur too often or upset the baby.
Types of Hiccups:
Surprised hiccups have types? Yes it does and they are:
Acute Hiccups:
This type only lasts for a few minutes and it is the most common type that people experience.
It is harmless and it usually resolves itself within a few minutes to hours without you doing nothing.
Persistent Hiccups:
Hiccups that last longer than 48 hours to a month are considered persistent and you should contact a doctor.
Intractable Hiccups:
These hiccups last for more than a month to a few months. They are also called recurrent hiccups.
This type is rare but it can be very stressful and exhausting if you ever experience it.
Intractable hiccups are usually because of an underlying medical problem and might not go away until that issue is corrected.
Examples of such conditions are cancer, stroke, disorders of the stomach or oesophagus, pneumonia, bladder irritation, hepatitis and so on.
Hiccups also happen after a surgery and during the recovery process from a procedure.
If your hiccups last more than 48 hours “see your doctor” or if they’re so severe that they disturb your eating, sleeping or breathing.
Your doctor will perform a physical examination to see if an underlying condition is causing your hiccups.
Why Do You Get Hiccups: What Causes it?
The actual cause of hiccups is unknown but certain factors that triggers hiccups include:
Stress
Smoking
Overeating
Eating spicy foods
Inhale toxic fumes
Excessive alcohol
Over–stretching your neck
Eating or drinking too quickly
Anaesthetized for a procedure
Drinking carbonated beverages
Taking drugs like dexamethasone
Swallowing air while chewing gum
Aerophagia (swallowing too much air)
Consuming very hot or very cold foods
Being excited or under strong emotions.
Prolonged hiccups sometimes occur due to an underlying medical condition such as:
Respiratory conditions like pleurisy of the diaphragm, pneumonia, or asthma.
CNS disorders like traumatic brain injury, brain tumour or stroke, inflammation of the brain (encephalitis), inflammation of the membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord (meningitis), multiple sclerosis (hardening of tissue in the brain or spinal cord) and others.
Psychological reactions which include grief, excitement, anxiety, stress, and shock.
Metabolic issues like hyperglycaemia, hypoglycaemia, diabetes, electrolyte imbalance and kidney disease.
Stomach and bowel disorders like gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
Nerve Irritation:
Another cause of long-term hiccups is irritation of the vagus nerves(which connects the brain to the stomach) and the phrenic nerve (which connects the neck to the diaphragm).
These nerves supply the diaphragm muscle.
Factors that may damage or irritate these nerves include:
Sore throat or laryngitis.
A tumour, cyst or growth on the thyroid gland in your neck.
Hair or other foreign body in your ear touching your eardrum.
Stomach acid that back flows into your oesophagus (the muscular tube that delivers food from your mouth to your stomach).
Medication:
A medication called dexamethasone, which is used to relieve inflammation in conditions such as arthritis, asthma and kidney problems also cause hiccups.
Other medications such as opiates, anaesthesia, barbiturates and methyldopa may also cause hiccups.
10 Unbelievable Ways to Get Rid of Hiccups
If you think hanging upside down will make your hiccups stop.
Well, sorry to say but there's no scientific proof that these remedies work.
This is because the exact cause of hiccups is uncertain.
Most hiccups go away after a few minutes but if yours is disturbing, try any of these remedies.
Bite on a lemon
Taste a drop of vinegar
Gently rub your eyeballs
Slowly sip or gargle cold water
Swallow some granulated sugar
Gently pull on the tip of your tongue
Sit down and hug your knees as close to the chest as possible for a short time.
Try the Valsalva manoeuvre, by shutting your mouth and nose and exhaling forcibly.
Breathe in and out of a paper bag, don't use a plastic bag for this and never cover the head with the bag.
Breathe in and hold the breath for about 10 seconds then inhale two more times before exhaling. Do this three or four times every 20 minutes.
If prolonged hiccups are interfering with your daily activities, your doctor may prescribe medication.
Such medication often include:
Chlorpromazine (largactil) oral 25mg (tds): An antipsychotic medication is the first-line treatment, as it is the only medication with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to treat hiccups.
Metoclopramide (Reglan): It belongs to the prokinetic drug group and is an anti nausea medication that may help some people with hiccups.
It is taken orally, 10mg orally three to four times daily
Baclofen: It is a muscle relaxant.
It is taken orally 5mg- 10mg, 3 times daily.
Gabapentin (Neurontin):
It is an anti seizure medication that doctors commonly prescribe for neuropathic pain and it can help alleviate the symptoms of hiccups.
It is taken orally, 100-400 mg three times daily
NOTE: If a patient is taking dexamethasone, switch to methylprednisolone.
Ephedrine and ketamine are used to treat hiccups related to anaesthesia or surgery.
Other drugs include lidocaine, phenytoin, pregabalin, carbamazepine.
In severe cases that do not respond to drug and other treatments, certain medical or surgical procedures may be done.
Which includes:
Gastric lavage or stomach pumping.
A surgeon may inject medication into the phrenic nerve, to temporarily block the nerve’s action or sever the phrenic nerve in the neck.
A doctor may perform a carotid sinus massage to help stop long lasting hiccups. This involves rubbing the main carotid artery in the neck.
Side Effects of Prolonged Hiccups
Chill and relax! Benign hiccups are as harmless as a dove) It’s normal for it to come and go.
However, prolonged hiccups can be very disturbing and may interfere with your eating, drinking, sleeping and speaking.
Which may lead to complications such as:
Fatigue
Malnutrition
Dehydration
Difficulty in eating
Irregular heart beat
Difficulty in speaking
Gastro oesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
Weight loss: when it becomes difficult to eat
Risk of developing depression; some people tend to feel embarrassed in public places.
Difficulty in sleeping (insomnia): if it persists during sleeping hours, it can be hard to fall asleep or stay asleep.
Final Thoughts
(oops! Finally to the end of hiccups)
Always remember, normal hiccups don't reduce your quality of life.
However, always monitor how long they last.
If your hiccups last only minutes to a couple of hours, you probably don't need to see a doctor.
However, if it lasts more than a few days (typically 2 days), you should see a doctor.
If the hiccups happen at the same time with symptoms like a headache, difficulty in balancing, or numbness, it can be a sign of something more serious.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hasn't approved any other prescription medications for the treatment of hiccups except Chlorpromazine.
Therefore, if a doctor recommends any of the prescription medications above, it’ll be an off-label drug use.
The next time you have those “hics” sound, just give it a cute smile of victory and try any of these tricks.
See you in the next blog post. Stay litty!