Drinking several gulps of cold water works to stop hiccups. istock
Some home remedies, such as stopping breathing for a few seconds or having someone scare us, work.
Feb 16, 2024 . Updated at 11:33 a.m.
Charles Osborne, a farmer from Iowa, United States, suffered hiccup uninterruptedly from 1922 to 1990, 68 years in a row. During the first years he had 40 hiccups per minute, but then they reduced to 20 until he finally disappeared, a few months before he died. It is a strange Guinness record as it is considered the longest time that a person has suffered from it, but it represents very well how annoying this condition can be that we have all experienced at some point and that we have tried to solve with home remedies that are passed from generation to generation. But what scientific evidence exists about them?
What is hiccups
“It’s called hiccups or singular» (Latin term that can be translated as gasping or sobbing) to the sound that arises from the sudden expulsion of air during an involuntary contraction of the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, with the subsequent closure of the glottis that produces that characteristic noise: ” “hip,” he explains. Elena Colladaresident member of the permanent commission of the Spanish Society of General Physicians (SEMG).
That is, the hiccup reflex consists of a sudden and involuntary contraction of the diaphragm and intercostal muscles that results in a rapid intake of air that causes a rapid and noisy closure of the glottis. An opening between the vocal cords located in the larynx that, when we eat, remains closed to prevent food and drinks from entering the lungs.
“We are talking about a benign and self-limited phenomenon in time,” confirms the doctor. Thus, when we suffer an episode of hiccups, in one minute they usually occur, on average, between six and twelve characteristic “hips”. However, Collada clarifies that its frequency and duration can affect the patient’s quality of life and be a symptom of an underlying pathology, sometimes serious.
Therefore, it provides three categories in which it can be classified, depending on its evolution and response to treatment:
- Sharp: one that lasts less than 48 hours. “It is the most common presentation and is usually benign.”
- Persistent: The episode lasts from 48 hours to less than a month.
- Intractable: when the hiccups last more than a month.
“Hiccups as a reason for visiting a hospital emergency department represent one case in every 8,000 patients a year,” says the doctor. Therefore, it can be interpreted that cases in which this condition becomes complicated are quite rare.
Why hiccups occur
In reality, Collada confesses that its pathophysiology is not exactly known: “But it seems to be aimed at stimulation at some point in the reflex arc, with afferents made up of branches of the vagus, phrenic and thoracic sympathetic nerves, which carry somatic and sensory signals.” to the brainstem.
These nerve branches run from the brain stem to the abdomen, diverging into many internal organs, including the stomach, intestine, spleen, liver, lungs, and kidneys. In this way, irritation at any point in this complex circuit can trigger the hiccup reflex. And therefore, the causes of it can be very varied.
If it is an acute episode that lasts less than two days, the doctor lists as “possible culprits” the consumption of carbonated drinksgastroesophageal reflux, aerophagia (excessive intake of air in the digestive tract), large meals, alcohol intake, tobacco, drugs and emotional stress. “It does not usually require medical treatment for remission as it is self-limited,” he says.
In the event that the hiccups last more than two days, “the emergency doctor should suspect possible underlying diseases; In general, it is usually related to irritation or injury to the phrenic nerve,” he says. Among the possible pathologies that may be behind it, Collada mentions stroke, encephalitis, head trauma, goiter, pharyngitis or neoplasms.
Hiccups already accompany us in the womb
Hiccups appear during intrauterine life from the seventeenth or eighteenth week of gestation. It remains relatively common during childhood, decreasing throughout life, without ever disappearing.
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How to relieve a hiccup episode
Stopping breathing for a few seconds is one of the ways we resort to when we suffer hiccups. And yes, it works. The doctor confirms it: “Doing it for ten or fifteen seconds causes an increase in CO2 in the blood and this activates the nerves responsible for the movements of the diaphragm.”
Another possible method that is also popular is drink several sips of cold water. It would also work to end hiccups, since the change in temperature causes a stimulus in the vagus nerve, involved in the appearance of hiccups, forcing the diaphragm to contract.
When we get scared, we stop breathing for a few seconds. Subsequently, the respiratory rate returns to normal, which also helps the disappearance of hiccups. Also when we press the two external auditory canals for a while.
Perhaps the popular home remedy that works the least to remove it is drinking a glass of water upside down. The fact of ingesting a liquid causes breathing to be interrupted for a few seconds, altering the cycle, but it is not necessary to do it the other way around, since drinking alone already works.
When Home Remedies Don’t Work: How to Treat Persistent Hiccups
«In cases of non-self-limited hiccups, resistant to physical vagal stimulation maneuvers, pharmacological treatment can be started. The drug of choice is an oral proton pump inhibitor, such as omeprazole or metoclopramide, for example,” confirms Collada.
Although it must be noted that this treatment must be indicated on an individualized basis. In very severe cases, transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the phrenic nerve or its blockade may be performed.