Explaining hiccups

Maybe you've eaten your food too fast. Or perhaps you've had  fizzy (gaseosa) drink and it's bubbling (burbujeando) in your stomach. For whatever reason, you suddenly experience a strange gulping (tragar) sensation as you breathe in.

Congratulations, you have the hiccups! (hipo)

    


Hiccups are a result of irritation of the diaphragmatic muscle that separates your chest (pecho) from your abdomen. As you inhale, the diaphragm opens up, stretching (extendiéndose) across your chest, and then relaxes as you exhale. When the diaphragm is irritated, the muscle goes into sudden spasms, known as hiccups, which usually last only a few minutes.

If your hiccups last for longer, you should tell your doctor.

How do you get rid of (librarse de) hiccups? Everybody has a cure, whether it's receiving a shock (susto), swallowing a spoonful (cucharada) of sugar, or holding your nose while sipping (tomar a sorbos) water. But do any of these cures work? Sure enough, scientists say that some will serve to interrupt the spasm of the muscle, but not in all people. So what works for one, may not work for the other.

One man had hiccups for 69 years. However (Sin embargo), it didn’t stop him from getting married twice and having eight children.