What is the perfect cure for getting rid of the hiccups?
At BHS there seems to be a common answer to that question. In a survey of 50 BHS students last week, 28 percent said that they simply hold their breath to free themselves from the hiccups. Drinking water was the second most popular cure by getting 22 percent of the votes. Other answers included drinking a glass of water upside down, scaring them away, chugging pickle juice, eating a spoonful of peanut butter, singing, and just letting them go away on their own.
“When I get the hiccups, I get a glass of water, put a napkin over the top, and then I drink the water through the napkin,” said Freshman Tiffany Kramer. “I was at my cousin’s birthday party and I got the hiccups. I couldn’t get rid of them so I asked my aunt ‘What should I do?” She said to put a napkin over the top of a glass and drink through it. I did and it worked. I think it works the best because you are so concentrated on drinking through the napkin that you forget about your hiccups.”
The 50 students also shared the longest amount of time that they’ve ever had the hiccups for. The top answer was a few hours to a day with 28 percent. To sophomore Autumn Miller, that isn’t anywhere near an extreme case of the hiccups.
“I get the hiccups off and on almost everyday. I’m not even joking,” said Miller. “I really hate when I get them in the middle of class. They’re so disruptive and annoying.”
According to Medical News Today, hiccups are an action that the body takes to protect itself. They happen when the diaphragm and the muscles between the ribs suddenly contract. That leads to a sharp and uncontrollable intake of air that does not reach the lungs because the muscle spasm closes the windpipe.
“The thought of simply gasping for air at the tipping point of a hiccup honestly scares me to death. I just think ‘What if I never get that next breath’,” said Sophomore Bryce Bishop. “When I was in the ACDA Minnesota honor choir last year I got the hiccups right before we performed. As I stepped onto the stage I took a big breath and held it for as long as I could. Luckily it helped.”
The 50 BHS students can come up with plenty of methods to get rid of the hiccups. However, 30 percent say that they barely ever get them and 20 percent say that they only get them a couple times a month.
Story By Taylor Holt
