Remedies to eliminate hiccups

2002/02/01 Agirre, Jabier - Medikua eta OEEko kidea Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Osasuna

What is zotin?

It is a spasm that appears without warning. And the worst is not that, because many times, even if the aforementioned "solutions" are used, it does not disappear. And it is that the hiccups seem to have their own life, although normally it is a response of the body to a situation created by himself.

Man has always tried to seek some explanation for zotin, and although throughout history there have been many theories, until recently it has not been known what caused zotin. In the Middle Ages, for example, when a person had a hiccups, they thought that evil spirits entered their body. Our grandmothers also associated hiccups with growth, because body movements during the zotinazo helped grow bones. But they are all false convictions.

What causes hiccups?

Hiccups always have their origin in physical motives. The most common reasons are heavy and heavy meals, soft drinks, eating or drinking too fast or drinking too much alcohol. It may also appear in certain diseases (such as epidemic encephalitis, postsurgery, or even stress).

What happens in these cases? That the nerves that control the muscle called diaphragm, located between the chest and belly, are altered, and that this anti-will spasm forces the person to suck the air. In addition, the glottis (opening between the vocal cords) closes and the air cannot pass through, it is what causes the characteristic sound of the zotin. After a moment, the diaphragm shrinks again and the process starts again.

Normally the hardened ones produced by hiccups are not usually very large (maybe a little embarrassment, if we are in public). However, in some cases the duration and frequency of the hiccups are greater, which prevents the person from doing their daily activities correctly. This can cause more serious problems such as malnutrition, insomnia, stress, etc.

Chronic hiccups can last for hours or days (as it is written) or repeat very often leaving only a few hours of rest between spasms. In this case, chronic hiccups make us suspect that there is a serious disease underneath.

Remedies against hiccups

The list of "remedies" against hiccups is very long, and in some cases these remedies work well. However, experts recommend waiting for the ankle to disappear by itself. These tricks or remedies used by the general public manage to calm the altered nervous system and, as air movements normalize, the hiccups also disappear.

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  When the hiccups are caused by alcohol abuse, you can use the so-called "trick of the bartender."
  One of the most used remedies is to take a surprise or scare. But if the person is alone and has nothing at his disposal, one of the remedies may be to make him sneer. They say that in these cases it is also worth praying to San Antonio, as a pattern of impossible tasks.
• Water is also widely used as an ankle solution. And the rites that must be followed are many and different: after several tragedies, after having drunk several times make a few small jumps, drink water with the nose closed or make gargargas…
• It is also recommended that people who have the hiccups keep their breath, or take it inside a paper bag (not inside a plastic bag), thus increasing the levels of carbon dioxide in the blood and relaxing the muscles and the diaphragm itself.
• The widespread remedies are the ingestion of a tablespoon of sugar (empty sugar or soaked with a few drops of vinegar) or the intake of a few drops of lemon. Through them the muscles of the throat loosen, the glottis opens, the air is introduced without obstacles and the zotin disappears.
• When the hiccups are caused by alcohol abuse, you can use the so-called "trick of the bartender": take a lemon, as immature or green as possible, so that there is a bitter and cut it by a tip. Eat the skin of the tip of the lemon and suck the water left out.
• In the case of chronic hiccups there are some medications that can be taken by prescription, such as baklofen and chlorpromazine that are used to relax to the musculature, omeprazole that reduces heartburn or haloperidol that helps eliminate gases. But beware of these medicines: always on prescription and at the dose indicated by the doctor.
• Recently, researchers at the University of Rome, Federico Bilotta and Giovani Rola, pointed out that by injecting an anti-slip sedative, in a few minutes, they managed to eradicate the hiccups of three patients. But this drug also has harmful effects (nausea, nervousness, dry mouth), so the news of Italian doctors, for the moment, can be taken very carefully.

In any case, and as long as there is no simpler and accessible remedy, we will have to continue with all the remedies and tricks that have been appearing over the years until we find the one that best suits our luck.