There are all kinds of weird and wonderful home remedies for treating hiccups and many are just ridiculous like standing on your head and counting backwards from 100 to 1. However there are also many natural remedies for hiccups that have been proven time and time again to be effective.
What Are Hiccups?
Hiccups are an uncontrolled reaction in the human body caused by sudden, involuntary contractions of the diaphragm, a muscle between the abdomen and the chest. These irregular movements of the diaphragm result in rapid sucking of air by lungs, closing the voice chords abruptly, which cause a reflex sound. Hiccups are normally nothing to worry about although if you have hiccups for a prolonged period of time it would be wise to consult your doctor just in case it is a symptom of a more serious underlying problem…
Although hiccups are not a serious medical condition they are disturbing and annoying. The worst part is that they may last for a several days and interfere with your work, eating and sleep. Although not harmful, they can be darn annoying and uncomfortable so keep reading and you shall learn 20 effective home remedies to stop hiccups in their tracks.
The following are home remedies which have been tested and are known to work.
10 Natural Foods and Herbal Remedies
Honey
If you find yourself hiccuping unceasingly, take a full tablespoon of honey to ease the sensation. The swallowing action, accompanied with the warmth of the honey, will help to relieve you of the hiccups. Honey has many benefits apart from curing hiccups.
Ice
Cold water or ice is believed to jolt the digestive tract and cure the hiccups immediately.
Add some few ice cubes to a glass of water and drink it. Alternatively, you can wrap up a few ice cubes in a clean, thin cloth and apply it to the back of your neck.
Yogurt
Add one full tablespoon of salt to a cup of yoghurt and mix it well to make a uniform mixture. Take the yoghurt slowly. You only need a few spoons of this mixture for instant relief from those continuous jerks.
Sugar
Take a full teaspoon of sugar when you’re hiccuping. Hold it in your mouth for at least 30 seconds while it dissolves, then chew and swallow it slowly. This results in excessive sweetness in the body which is believed to be a good remedy for hiccups.
Lemon
Lemon has plenty of health benefits. While it’s still not clear how lemon works to cure hiccups, the common belief is that its sour taste helps to saturate the digestive tract. It additionally stimulates the nerves with a sour taste that helps to control the hiccups.
Cardamom Powder
Cardamom powder is well known to offer relief from hiccups almost immediately. Boil one teaspoon of fresh cardamom powder in one and half cups of water over a low heat. Allow the liquid to cool and then drink the resulting filtrate.
This powder is believed to help relax the muscle of the diaphragm. Cardamom powder works by flushing out the excess alcohol in the system, relaxing the diaphragm muscles further.
Chamomile Tea
Brew and consume chamomile tea as a cure for hiccups. Chamomile tea is a natural muscle relaxant that relaxes the muscles in the diaphragm to control hiccups and ease contractions.
Asafoetida
Asafoetida is a strong agent that eases the muscles of the diaphragm.
Mix one full teaspoon of asafoetida powder in a tablespoon of clarified butter and consume.
It’s very powerful and works very fast to provide quick relief from hiccups.
Ginger
Ginger is a recommended home remedy for most digestive diseases. Apart from controlling nausea, it also works well to cure the body of unceasing hiccups, giving you instant relief. Peel and cut a small portion of ginger and chew it. In the event that you don’t like the sharp taste of raw ginger, drink lemon juice with a few drops of ginger mixed in it.
Water
A simple but a very effective cure for hiccups is by drinking a glass full of water slowly. The swallowing process eases the muscles of the diaphragm and helps to relieve the hiccups. Take 3 to 4 glasses of cold water for a severe case of hiccups.
Also, gargling water can often result in curing your uncontrollable hiccups.
10 Strange But effective Home Remedies
Although some of the home remedies for hiccups listed below are weird, they have been proven to effectively cure hiccups.
Rectal Massage
This might sound weird but this method has been proven scientifically to cure intractable hiccups. Researchers at the Bnai Zion Medical Center, in Israel, used digital rectal massage to cure intractable hiccups in a 60 year old man. The rectum is supplied with an abundance of parasympathetic and sympathetic nerves, and scientists believe that rectal massage causes increased vagal tone and as a result cures hiccups.
Sex
This might seem like the suspicious advice of an over amorous lover, but sex has been scientifically proven to cures hiccups. In 1999, a man who had hiccups tried many treatments to cure his hiccups, he had even sought treatment from his doctor, but nothing seemed to work. His hiccups went on for several days, until he made love to his wife. Sure enough, his hiccups stopped. He explained what occurred to his doctor, who then published a case report describing how sex cured the man’s hiccups, in the journal Canadian Family Physician.
Valsalva maneuver
In this method you are supposed to push your breath out while keeping your voice box and throat closed. Take a deep breath and then hold the air inside your lungs and at the same time push with your muscles as if you want to force the air out.
The movement is like pushing during childbirth or straining on the toilet.
You can also sit down and lean forward over your knees or pull your knees to your chest to compress the chest.
Breath in and out of a paper bag
This is an age old trick that has treated the hiccups of many people. This treatment method works on the premise that when you breathe in and out of a paper bag you increase the amount of carbon dioxide which you will be taken into your body. As a result your body will get rid of the hiccups and concentrate on getting rid of the carbon dioxide that you are breathing in. It is important that you do it at your own level of comfort.
Pull Out Your Tongue
The act of pulling out your tongue stimulates the vagus nerve, eases the diaphragm spasms, while at the same time avoiding any serious gag reflexes. This is the only time when the act pulling out your tongue in public will not be considered to be rude.
Tickle the roof of your mouth
Another effective method you can use to get rid of hiccups is to tickle the roof of your mouth. You can do this with the assistance of a cotton q-tip or your finger.
The soft palate of your mouth or the roof of your mouth will be stimulated to reduce the hiccups. This method works by stimulating the vagus nerve.
Controlled Breathing
Take a deep breath and then try to hold it as long as you can without breathing and then gently and slowly in a controlled way.
Do several repetitions of this procedure, and you will certainly cure your hiccups.
Block Your Ears
Stick your fingers into your ears for 20 to 30 seconds. You can also press the soft areas behind your earlobes.
The above actions send a “relax” signal through the vagus nerve, which connects to the area of your diaphragm and as a result gets rid of your hiccups.
Peanut Butter
Get a tablespoon of peanut butter and put it in your mouth and then hold it for 5 to 10 seconds. You should then swallow it without chewing. The saliva in your mouth should have broken down the peanut butter a little bit, making it easier to swallow. The texture of peanut butter and its sweetness helps change the rhythm of your breathing and as a result cures hiccups.
Black Pepper
Black pepper causes sneezing, but it’s helpful in relieving hiccups. This spice affects the diaphragm contractions and respiratory function. Strangely, the best technique for using black pepper to treat hiccups is to inhale it through your nose. The resulting sneeze will put an end to your hiccups.
Final Thoughts
So, Do you think one of these home remedies for hiccups will work for you? There’s only one way to know for sure but all of these methods have worked for others so knowing these cures I think you will be pretty well prepared for next time you get a dose of the hiccups.
Did you enjoy reading this article? Leave a comment and say so! Thank you.
REFERENCES
http://mywellness.in/10-easy-home-remedies-hiccups/#sthash.OLnmdIJB.dpuf
http://www.articlesbase.com/alternative-medicine-articles/top-15-home-remedies-for-hiccups-877571.html
http://www.ayushveda.com/magazine/10-simple-home-remedies-for-hiccups/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2144777/
Peleg, R., & Peleg, A. (2000). Case report: Sexual intercourse as potential treatment for intractable hiccups. Canadian Family Physician, 46, 1631-1632. – See more at: http://www.mindthesciencegap.org/2012/11/05/the-best-way-to-stop-hiccups-is-there-any-evidence-at-all/#sthash.yVOLtkam.dpuf
http://www.medindia.net/homeremedies/hiccups.asp#ixzz3G08Rn5gB
Read more at http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/11-ways-to-get-rid-of-the-hiccups/#xc5GJh510uRIMBgu.99
http://physicsofsex.blogspot.com/2007/03/sexual-hiccup-cure-and-your-chance-to.html
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