Why Do We Hiccup? (And Other Mysteries Scientists Can’t Fully Explain)
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Ever tried to impress your friends with a 47-second hiccup streak? Or had a hiccup attack during class and tried to hold it in like a stealthy ninja? You’re not alone. Hiccups are weird. We all get them. And even though they’ve been studied for centuries, scientists still haven’t cracked the full mystery.

That’s right – even in the age of space travel, AI and robotic dogs that can dance, the humble hiccup still has experts scratching their heads. Welcome to the wonderfully bizarre world of Weird Science, where not everything has a clear answer - yet.


Why the Human Body can be a Puzzle

Let’s be honest - the human body is pretty amazing. We can run, think, laugh, dance, hiccup (obviously) and heal from injuries. But the more we learn about the body, the weirder it seems.

Take this fun example: Did you know that you shed about 1.5 million skin cells every hour? Or that your stomach gets a brand new lining every few days so it doesn’t digest itself?

These are the kinds of human body facts that make even the smartest scientists do a double take. And while we understand the “what” of many body functions, the “why” can still be a total mystery – especially when it comes to hiccups.


So What is a Hiccup?

Let’s break it down. A hiccup is a sudden, involuntary contraction (that means your body does it on its own) of the diaphragm - the big muscle just below your lungs that helps you breathe. That contraction is followed by your vocal cords snapping shut, which creates the classic hic sound.

Sounds simple, right? Here’s where it gets weird: We don’t really know why we hiccup. Scientists have theories - some of them pretty convincing - but no one answer explains every case of hiccups. Welcome to the beautiful confusion of Weird Science.


Human Body Facts: Hiccups Edition

Let’s take a deep breath (without hiccuping) and check out some hiccup-tastic facts:

  • Longest hiccup episode ever? A man named Charles Osborne hiccupped for 68 years straight! That’s 430 million hiccups. By way of explanation, he started hiccupping in 1922 after a fall caused minor brain damage. His hiccups occurred around 20- 40 times per minute, non-stop (day and night) for 68 years! He hiccupped through eating, talking and sleeping (though they slowed down during sleep). The hiccups mysteriously stopped in 1990, a year before he died.
  • Babies hiccup more than anyone. Even before they're born, hiccups are common in the womb. No joke – some unborn babies get the hiccups every day.
  • Some animals hiccup too. Dogs, cats, and even guinea pigs can get hiccups. So if your puppy looks confused while making strange noises - now you know.

And in other bizarre hiccup cases from around the world:

  • A British teen hiccupped 10,000 times a day for months due to a brain tumour.
  • An American woman developed chronic hiccups that only stopped with hypnosis.
  • In Japan, a man’s hiccups were linked to a rare form of acid reflux.

 

Hiccup Hacks from History

Before modern medicine, people got seriously creative trying to cure hiccups. 

In Ancient Persia, doctors recommended sucking on a lemon soaked in vinegar. 

In medieval Europe, it was believed that saying the Lord’s Prayer backwards could help! 

Even today, folk remedies from around the world range from sniffing pepper to balancing a wet spoon on your nose. 

It might sound silly, but hey - when you're 15 hiccups deep into your Maths class, you'll try anything.

We deal with other possible methods of hiccup ‘cure’ later in this article.


The Science of Superheroes (And What Hiccups Have to Do With It)

Now we get to the fun part: the science of superheroes.

If you think about it, superheroes often have strange powers or body quirks that normal science can’t explain - like Spider-Man’s spidey sense or The Flash’s lightning-fast metabolism. These powers often come with unintended side effects. Sound familiar?

A hiccup is a little like a superhero power you can’t control. Imagine sneezing flames every time you hiccupped – you’d be a legend at barbecues but banned from libraries.

In real life, scientists study how extreme conditions (like holding your breath or shocking your nerves) can trigger hiccups - and sometimes even stop them. This overlaps with the science of superheroes, which often looks at how the body might behave under extreme stress, mutation or even superhuman abilities.

In fact, some researchers studying hiccups have explored whether they could be a leftover reflex from early human evolution. Super weird. Super science.


Weird Science Doesn’t Always Have Answers (Yet)

The coolest part of science? It’s constantly evolving. Today’s weird mystery is tomorrow’s solved puzzle. But until we fully understand hiccups, we’re left with questions:

  • Are hiccups just a reflex from ancient times?
  • Are they caused by excitement, spicy food or talking too fast? (All of the above?)
  • Why do some people hiccup for hours… and others barely ever?

What we do know is that hiccups usually go away on their own. But if they stick around for more than 48 hours (yes, seriously), doctors might need to investigate more serious causes.


How to (Possibly) Stop a Hiccup

Warning: None of these methods are guaranteed to work. But they might help, and they’re fun to try:

  • Hold your breath and count to ten. Classic.
  • Drink water upside down. Don’t ask why. Just try it (carefully).
  • Get surprised. If someone scares you mid-hiccup, it might reset your diaphragm.
  • Breathe into a paper bag. But don’t go too wild - always stop if you feel dizzy.
  • Swallow a teaspoon of granulated sugar: let the dry sugar crystals tickle the back of your throat as you swallow. That mild irritation can “reset” your vagus nerve and stop the hiccup reflex in its tracks.


Again, no solid science proves these tricks work every time. But that’s what makes hiccups a perfect example of Weird Science – we’re still figuring it out!


Embracing the Mystery

The next time you get a case of hiccups, don’t just be annoyed - be curious. You’re experiencing one of the great unsolved quirks of human biology.

And if you love learning about strange bodily functions, space mysteries or how the science of superheroes might apply to real life, you’re in luck. Science isn’t just about what we know - it’s about what we’re still discovering.

So whether you're in Year 3 or Year 10, if you’ve ever asked “Why does my body do that?” – you're already thinking like a scientist.


Want More Weird Science?

If your brain is buzzing and you want to go further down the hiccup rabbit hole, check out:

  • KidsHealth: What Are Hiccups? - A great explainer for young readers; and
  • ABC Education – Weird Science Series - Packed with mind-blowing facts and experiments.

Share with your friends so they can benefit too.
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