Get rid of hiccups
To get rid of hiccups, you can use a lot of general household tips. However, the response to these many different tips varies greatly, so you will need to try many methods to find out if you can get rid of hiccups. Probably the best known tip is to hold your breath for a longer period of time.
Another well-known tip is to be scared by friends or acquaintances. To get rid of hiccups, it is sometimes helpful to drink a few sips and not to breathe in between. If a hiccup has occurred due to drinking alcohol or smoking, it is advisable to avoid these noxious substances. It is possible that all these tips will not help to get rid of hiccups. If the hiccups do not go away on their own after a certain period of time, you should consult a doctor to find out the possible causes.
Baby hiccups
Especially babies tend to have frequent hiccups. They have hiccups even before they are born. One assumption is that this hiccup in the mother’s stomach is a kind of protective reflex against the amniotic fluid.
In addition, hiccups in the fetus should be a kind of “lung training” to prepare them for the situation after birth. Babies also often have hiccups after birth. Drinking breast milk too quickly and hastily at the breast or drinking from a bottle can cause hiccups by irritating the diaphragm and especially the phrenic nerve.A full, tense stomach may also be another cause of hiccups in babies. Hiccups occur when too much food is ingested or when air is simultaneously introduced into the stomach by swallowing too hastily. The hiccups then try to move the swallowed air out of the stomach by tensing the muscles to make more room for food.
Hiccups due to alcohol
Alcohol is also a possible cause of hiccups. Carbonated beverages such as Cola or Sprite are often mixed with high-proof alcohol. Not only the alcohol is then a possible reason for hiccups, but also the carbonic acid.
The stomach is bloated by the carbonic acid and then irritates the diaphragm. The same effect occurs when drinking beer. But pure alcohol can also cause hiccups.
Since alcohol is a cell poison, it often directly attacks the cells of the mucous membrane. It can lead to direct nerve irritation and cause hiccups. Cold also plays an important role when drinking alcohol in connection with the occurrence of hiccups.
Cold drinks, even if they are not alcoholic drinks, are also a common trigger of hiccups. They are often mixed with alcohol. At the same time, regular consumption of alcohol leads to hyperacidity of the stomach. The acidic gastric juice can then enter the esophagus and irritate the mucous membrane there, which in turn can lead to hiccups. If the so-called reflux described above occurs more frequently, it can lead to chronic inflammation of the mucous membrane of the esophagus.
