• Question: Why, are hiccups a thing

    Asked by anon-175288 to Thomas, hayleypincott, Ella, David, Alison, Alex on 12 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Hayley Pincott

      Hayley Pincott answered on 12 Jun 2018:

      Do you ever get that really annoying twitch in the corner of your eye like I do? Well my understanding is that what hiccups are, i’s just your diaphragm twitching. As to why they happen I’m afraid I have no idea. Sorry!!!!

    • Photo: Ella Mercer

      Ella Mercer answered on 14 Jun 2018:

      Oh I hate getting hiccups! Humans aren’t the only ones to get them though … lots of animals do too! Also, they happen in babies when they’re still inside the mum’s tummy! Like Hayley mentioned, you have a muscle in between your chest and your tummy called the diaphragm. This muscle is important because it helps us to breathe; when we breathe in the diaphragm pulls down into our tummy helping to pull air into the lungs. Imagine it a bit like a rubber band. Sometimes it gets irritated if we eat too quickly or laugh too much and suddenly pulls downwards (imagine stretching the rubber band) – when that happens we get too much air coming in too quickly making our vocal cords (the bits in our throat that allows us to make sounds) close up – this is why he get the ‘hic!’ sound! What do you think the best cure for hiccups is??

    • Photo: David Mills

      David Mills answered on 14 Jun 2018:

      I’m not entirely sure how they happen, but I know if I eat a banana quickly it invariably starts me hiccuping. Nothing else I eat or drink seems to have such an immediate effect.

    • Photo: Thomas Perriment

      Thomas Perriment answered on 18 Jun 2018:

      Ella’s spot on! The diaphragm, a muscle just below your lungs, can get irritated which causes it to almost twitch causing a sharp intake of breath.

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