What triggers frequent hiccups. How can persistent hiccups be stopped. When should hiccups be a cause for concern. What are the most effective remedies for chronic hiccups. How do underlying health conditions contribute to recurring hiccups.

Understanding the Mechanism Behind Hiccups

Hiccups are a common physiological phenomenon that most people experience occasionally. But what exactly happens in our body when we hiccup? Hiccups result from an involuntary contraction of the diaphragm, the muscular sheet that separates the chest cavity from the abdomen. This sudden contraction is followed by a rapid closure of the vocal cords, producing the characteristic “hic” sound.

The medical term for hiccups is “singultus,” derived from the Latin word “singult,” which means “to catch one’s breath while sobbing.” This description aptly captures the sudden, jerky nature of hiccups.

The Anatomy of a Hiccup

During normal breathing, the diaphragm contracts and moves downward to draw air into the lungs. In a hiccup, this process is disrupted:

1. The diaphragm contracts suddenly and forcefully.
2. This causes a quick intake of air.
3. Almost immediately, the windpipe (larynx) closes.
4. The closure of the windpipe produces the “hic” sound.

This cycle repeats until the hiccups subside. But why does this disruption occur in the first place?

Common Triggers for Hiccups

Hiccups can be triggered by various factors, many of which are related to our eating and drinking habits. Understanding these triggers can help in preventing frequent hiccup episodes.

Dietary and Lifestyle Factors

• Eating too quickly or too much
• Drinking carbonated beverages
• Consuming alcohol
• Smoking
• Swallowing air (aerophagia)
• Sudden temperature changes in food or drink

Can certain foods cause hiccups more than others? While individual responses may vary, spicy foods, very hot or very cold items, and carbonated drinks are often associated with triggering hiccups. This is likely due to their ability to irritate the diaphragm or cause sudden changes in stomach distension.

Emotional and Physical Triggers

Hiccups aren’t always related to what we consume. Sometimes, they can be triggered by emotional states or physical actions:

• Emotional shock or stress
• Excitement
• Sudden temperature changes (like taking a cold shower)
• Overstretching the neck

Is stress a significant factor in causing hiccups? While stress alone may not directly cause hiccups, it can lead to changes in breathing patterns or eating habits that might trigger them. Managing stress through relaxation techniques may help reduce the frequency of stress-related hiccups.

Medical Causes of Persistent Hiccups

While most hiccup episodes are brief and harmless, persistent hiccups lasting more than 48 hours or intractable hiccups lasting more than two months can be a sign of an underlying medical condition.

Neurological Causes

Several neurological conditions can lead to persistent hiccups:

• Brain tumors
• Stroke
• Multiple sclerosis
• Parkinson’s disease

These conditions may affect the nerves that control the diaphragm or the brain centers responsible for the hiccup reflex.

Gastrointestinal Causes

Disorders of the digestive system can also lead to chronic hiccups:

• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
• Stomach distension
• Abdominal tumors

How does GERD contribute to hiccups? In GERD, stomach acid can irritate the diaphragm, leading to spasms that cause hiccups. Additionally, the increased pressure in the stomach can push against the diaphragm, triggering the hiccup reflex.

Other Medical Causes

A wide range of other medical conditions can potentially cause persistent hiccups:

• Infections (e.g., pneumonia, meningitis)
• Metabolic disorders (e.g., diabetes, kidney failure)
• Cardiovascular disorders (e.g., heart attack, pericarditis)
• Certain medications (e.g., steroids, benzodiazepines)

Complications of Chronic Hiccups

While occasional hiccups are harmless, persistent or intractable hiccups can lead to significant complications and impact a person’s quality of life.

Physical Complications

• Weight loss due to difficulty eating
• Sleep disturbances
• Fatigue
• Dehydration
• Gastroesophageal reflux

Psychological and Social Impact

Chronic hiccups can also take a toll on a person’s mental health and social life:

• Embarrassment in social situations
• Anxiety and depression
• Difficulty concentrating at work or school
• Social isolation

How severe can the impact of chronic hiccups be? In extreme cases, persistent hiccups can lead to exhaustion, malnutrition, and even depression. The constant interruption of normal activities can significantly reduce quality of life, making treatment essential.

Effective Home Remedies for Hiccups

For most cases of short-term hiccups, simple home remedies can be effective. These remedies often work by either stimulating the vagus nerve or interrupting the breathing cycle.

Physical Techniques

• Holding breath for a short time
• Breathing into a paper bag
• Pulling knees to chest and leaning forward
• Gargling with ice water

Dietary Remedies

• Sipping ice-cold water
• Swallowing a teaspoon of sugar
• Sucking on a lemon slice
• Drinking water from the opposite side of the glass

Which home remedy is most effective for stopping hiccups? The effectiveness of these remedies can vary from person to person. However, techniques that stimulate the vagus nerve, such as holding your breath or drinking ice-cold water, are often reported as the most effective.

Medical Treatments for Persistent Hiccups

When home remedies fail to stop persistent hiccups, medical intervention may be necessary. The treatment approach will depend on the underlying cause of the hiccups and their severity.

Medications

Several types of medications can be prescribed to treat chronic hiccups:

• Baclofen (a muscle relaxant)
• Chlorpromazine (an antipsychotic)
• Metoclopramide (used to treat nausea and GERD)
• Gabapentin (an anticonvulsant)

Surgical Interventions

In severe cases where medications are ineffective, surgical options may be considered:

• Phrenic nerve block
• Vagus nerve stimulation
• Diaphragm pacing

Are these surgical procedures a last resort? Generally, yes. Surgical interventions are typically only considered when all other treatment options have failed and the hiccups are severely impacting the patient’s quality of life.

When to Seek Medical Attention for Hiccups

While most hiccup episodes are benign and self-limiting, there are situations where medical attention should be sought.

Duration of Hiccups

Seek medical help if:

• Hiccups last more than 48 hours
• Hiccups interfere with eating, sleeping, or breathing
• Hiccups occur frequently and disrupt daily life

Associated Symptoms

Consult a healthcare provider if hiccups are accompanied by:

• Severe abdominal pain
• Fever
• Shortness of breath
• Spitting up blood
• Feeling of fullness in the neck

Should all persistent hiccups be evaluated by a doctor? While not all cases of persistent hiccups indicate a serious condition, it’s generally advisable to consult a healthcare provider if hiccups last more than 48 hours. This is particularly important if the hiccups are interfering with daily activities or are accompanied by other concerning symptoms.

Hiccups, while often a minor nuisance, can sometimes be a sign of underlying health issues. Understanding the causes, recognizing when they become a concern, and knowing effective treatment options can help manage this common but sometimes troublesome condition. If you experience frequent or persistent hiccups, don’t hesitate to discuss your concerns with a healthcare professional. They can help determine if there’s an underlying cause that needs addressing and recommend the most appropriate treatment plan for your situation.

Why do we hiccup? Causes and treatments

Most people experience hiccups from time to time. They can be uncomfortable and sometimes embarrassing, but they are usually short lived. Sometimes, however, they can indicate a more serious health concern.

Folk remedies for hiccups include drinking water and giving someone a shock, among others. Not all of these will work, but some may help.

Recurring or long term hiccups can indicate a serious underlying cause, such as neurological damage. For this reason, people should seek medical help if hiccups last for longer than 48 hours.

Some less concerning causes of hiccups include eating too quickly and taking a cold shower.

In this article, learn more about what causes hiccups, how to stop them, and when to see a doctor.

Hiccups result from a muscular spasm that happens when a person breathes in bursts of air.

The Latin name for hiccups is “singultus.” It comes from the word “singult,” meaning “to catch one’s breath while sobbing. ”

When a person breathes in, they use the intercostal muscles (between the ribs) and the diaphragm (a dome-shaped sheet of muscle below the lungs).

Usually, when a person takes a breath, the diaphragm pulls down to draw air into the lungs. As they breathe out, the diaphragm pushes up to expel the air.

When a person has hiccups, the diaphragm contracts and pulls down, drawing in air between breaths. Immediately after this, the windpipe closes for a moment to prevent more air from entering the lungs. This produces the characteristic “hic” sound.

There are several reasons that hiccups occur. The sections below describe these in detail.

After eating or drinking

Hiccups often come after eating or drinking too much or too quickly.

The stomach, which is directly below the diaphragm, becomes distended. This irritates the diaphragm and causes it to contract, as it does when we breathe in.

Other digestion-related activities that may trigger hiccups include:

• gulping soda
• heartburn or acid reflux
• consuming alcohol
• smoking a lot
• swallowing air, including during hyperventilation
• eating hot then cold food, or the other way round

Emotional triggers

Sometimes, hiccups occur due to a disturbance in the nerve pathways that lead from the brain to the muscles between the ribs.

This can cause short term hiccups following:

• an emotional shock or stress
• excitement
• an abrupt change in temperature, such as by taking a cold shower

Other reasons

Hiccups can also occur when a person:

• overstretches their neck, such as when shaving
• takes certain medications
• needs anesthetics during surgery

Medications that can lead to hiccups include:

• some chemotherapy drugs
• benzodiazepines for anxiety
• opioid pain relief medication

“Persistent” hiccups are those that last for longer than 48 hours.

Sometimes, an episode of hiccups can last for longer than 2 months. Doctors call these “intractable” hiccups.

This could be due to a problem with:

• the brain or spinal cord
• the structures around the diaphragm or chest wall
• blood composition, such as high blood calcium levels
• the stomach, if it presses on the diaphragm

Hiccups can be a symptom of an underlying health problem. For example, they are a common occurrence in gastroesophageal disease.

Some people with cancer might also experience frequent hiccups. This may be due to their symptoms or some aspects of their treatment plan.

A wide range of other conditions can increase the likelihood of hiccups, including:

Infections: Examples include shingles, herpes simplex, and malaria.

Neurological conditions: Examples include aneurysm, stroke, Parkinson’s disease, and multiple sclerosis.

Ear, nose, and throat problems: Examples include cough, having a hair in the throat, and recent intubation.

Respiratory conditions: Examples include pneumonia, asthma, and bronchitis.

Metabolic disorders: Examples include diabetes, uremia, and hyponatremia.

Cardiovascular disorders: Examples include heart attack and pericarditis.

Complications

Persistent hiccups can lead to:

• embarrassment and a reduced quality of life
• nausea
• weight loss
• sleep loss
• fatigue
• dehydration
• sadness, anxiety, and depression

Both the causes and the impact of long term hiccups can be severe.

Learn more about what hiccups are and why they happen here.

People use a number of remedies for curing short term hiccups. Some of these are useful, but others are not.

Here are some that may help:

• Hold the breath for a short time.
• Pull the knees up to the chest and lean forward.
• Breathe into a paper bag.
• Take a few sips of ice cold water.
• Have a taste of lemon or vinegar.
• Swallow a little granulated sugar.
• Drink a glass of water, which will stimulate the nose and throat.
• Hold a cold compress to the face.
• Experience a sudden fright.

Breathing into a paper bag can halt the spasms by increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the lungs and relaxing the diaphragm. However, people should not put the bag over their head.

Other methods that people have tried include:

• hypnosis
• acupuncture
• rectal massage
• sexual stimulation
• ejaculation

There is not enough evidence to confirm the usefulness of many of these approaches.

Learn more about how to get rid of hiccups here.

Things to avoid

The following methods are not suitable for stopping hiccups:

• consuming alcohol, hot drinks, or sodas
• chewing gum or smoking
• eating spicy food
• eating food quickly
• eating something hot followed by something cold

These techniques may make hiccups worse.

People should see a doctor if:

• hiccups last for longer than 48 hours
• they happen often
• they affect a person’s comfort and quality of life

If a person has persistent hiccups, a doctor may:

• identify and treat any underlying causes
• change their medication
• prescribe medication to relax the muscles
• treat symptoms, such as by prescribing medication to reduce feelings of nausea

Various drugs can help relieve hiccups. For example, injecting 25–50 milligrams of a drug called chlorpromazine has proven effective in 80% of cases.

In severe cases, a doctor may even recommend surgery.

What causes hiccups and how can you get rid of them?

We all get hiccups from time to time, and sometimes they just won’t seem to go away.

Hiccups are involuntary contractions of the diaphragm – the muscle separating your chest from your abdomen, which plays a key role in breathing – followed by a sudden closure of the vocal cords.

The medical term for hiccups is singultus. This derives from the Latin word singult which means “to catch ones breath while sobbing”.

For most of us, hiccups are annoying and don’t last that long. But for some people, they can be persistent, lasting more than two days.

The good news is, there are simple ways to alleviate regular hiccups – and treatments for when they persist.

What causes hiccups?

Hiccups are caused by a reflex arc: a neuromotor pathway that translates a sensation into a physical response. The sensations in this arc come from the brain, ear, nose and throat, diaphragm and organs in the chest and abdomen.

The sensation signals travel to a part of the brain which, along with the top of the spinal cord, is known as the “hiccup centre”.

From the hiccup centre, the signals travel back out to the diaphragm and the muscles that lay between your ribs (intercostal muscles), causing them to twitch.

The twitching of these muscles draws air into the lungs and this sudden inhalation makes the opening between the vocal cords, or glottis, close tightly shut. This rapid closure makes the “hic” sound.

Even fetuses get the hiccups.
Shutterstock

Anything that affects the arc can lead to hiccups. The most common is stretching the stomach from eating a large meal or drinking soft drinks. This means sensation signals from the stomach can trigger off the reflex arc.

Consuming hot chilli pepper, alcohol, smoking, and over-excitement can also trigger the reflex arc, leading to hiccups.

Hiccups have even been observed in healthy fetuses during prenatal ultrasound checks. In fact, some researchers believe hiccups are a mechanism to help prepare the lungs for breathing shortly after birth.

How long will they last? And what can you do about them?

An attack of hiccups that lasts less than 48 hours is generally unconcerning. Such an attack usually ends by itself.

Where it doesn’t resolve by itself, there are ways to suppress the reflex arc. The Valsalva manoeuvre, consuming ice-cold drinks and gentle eyeball pressure are thought to increase the activity of a long nerve (vagus) to the brain.

The Conversation, CC BY-ND

Manoeuvres such as rebreathing into a paper or plastic bag work by increasing the carbon dioxide concentration in the blood. This helps to suppress the movements of the muscles associated with hiccups. However, rebreathing carries a small but serious risk of heart attack so should only be performed under medical supervision.

However there is very limited evidence to show these manoeuvres and interventions work.

When should we get worried about hiccups?

If hiccups last longer than two days, they are called persistent hiccups. If they last beyond two months they are known as intractable hiccups.
Persistent and intractable hiccups, known collectively as chronic hiccups, can be quite distressing and may signify a serious underlying cause, so it’s important to see your doctor.

People with chronic hiccups will undergo a comprehensive investigation. Their medical history will often give valuable clues to triggers. Certain medications such as anti-epileptic drugs, alcohol, smoking and recreational drug use are all associated with hiccups.

As organs in the chest and abdomen are involved in the reflex arc, investigations of these organs such as lung imaging or upper endoscopy (where a tube with a tiny camera is inserted into the throat to view the upper digestive tract), may be required.

One study from France found 80% of patients with chronic hiccups had abnormalities in their oesophagus and stomach, with reflux disease being the most common finding.

Read more:
Explainer: what is gastric reflux?

Your clinician will also inspect your ear, nose and throat, as irritation of the ear by a foreign body or infection of the throat can be triggers for hiccups.

Imaging of the brain may be necessary, especially if there are concerning signs such as changes in speech and weakness of facial and limb muscles.

Drinking ice cold water helps some people.
Giorgio Trovato/Unsplash

How are chronic hiccups treated?

After a thorough investigation, the underlying cause should be treated, where possible.

People suffering from hiccups often have problems with gastric reflux, so treatment may include a short course of anti-reflux medication.

Other medications with a strong evidence base that are used to treat hiccups include the anti-nausea drug metoclopramide and baclofen, which is used to treat muscle spasticity (excessive tightness or tone).

There is emerging evidence that gabapentin, used to treat seizures, may also be effective for hiccups.

What treatments might we see in future?

Researchers have recently developed a rigid drinking tube with an inlet valve that requires active suction effort to draw water from a cup into the mouth. This tube has been called forced inspiratory suction and swallow tool, or FISST.

FISST is thought to stop the hiccup reflex arc by stimulating the sensory nerves to cause contraction of the diaphragm and glottis.

In one study, of the 249 participants who trialled FISST, just over 90% reported results better than home remedies.

However, the FISST research so far hasn’t compared it to a control group who didn’t receive the treatment, so it’s unclear how much more effective it is than a placebo, or dummy version.

Read more:
Curious Kids: why do we burp?

Causes and Quick Remedies

Hiccups: Causes and Quick Remedies

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• Hiccups: Causes and Quick Remedies

Hiccuping is an uncontrolled physiological reaction, in the development of which the phrenic nerve, vagus nerve, and centers of the brain are involved. During hiccups, the intercostal and diaphragmatic muscles tighten, as when inhaling, but the airways overlap, so there is a short-term breath holding. People hiccup with a characteristic sound that is caused by the sharp closing of the vocal folds.

Why hiccups occur

Hiccups help to remove excess air from the stomach, so its periodic appearance is not considered a problem. It can occur with a hasty meal, talking while eating. Also, the symptom occurs during laughter, accompanied by a series of quick breaths and overflow of the stomach with air.

The second physiological reason for the appearance of hiccups is irritation of the fibers of the phrenic and vagus nerves, which triggers a specific reflex. The situation most often occurs when the stomach is overdistended with a large amount of food, when swallowing large pieces that hardly pass through the esophagus, after taking spicy, too hot or cold food. In some people, hiccups are provoked by hypothermia, stress, and drinking alcohol.

Long-term hiccups that occur frequently and without association with typical precipitating factors usually indicate a health problem. Possible causes of an unpleasant symptom:

● gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), diaphragmatic hernia and other diseases of the esophagus;

● diseases of the liver, pancreas, stomach and intestines;

● diseases of the chest organs – pleurisy, pneumonia, pericarditis, myocardial infarction;

● pathology of the nervous system: encephalitis, intracranial hypertension, traumatic brain injury, tumors of the posterior cranial fossa.

How to deal with hiccups

There are quite a few ways to quickly eliminate hiccups:

● breath holding for 20-30 s;

● a series of deep and slow breaths;

● drinking several sips of water;

● torso tilt forward;

● sucking on an ice cube;

● eating a piece of lemon or other product with a sharp taste;

● inhalation of ammonia;

● pulling the tongue forward for a few seconds.

These simple actions have one of two goals: to stimulate the vagus nerve to stop pathological impulses, or to increase the concentration of carbon dioxide in the blood, as a result of which the nervous regulation of the respiratory system normalizes. Usually a person needs to try several methods and choose the most suitable for himself.

Short-term hiccups pass without a trace and do not have a negative effect on the body, so it is not at all necessary to use the above methods. The person may simply wait a few minutes for the symptom to subside and then return to daily activities.

When to see a doctor

Hiccups that last for several hours and do not disappear after all the methods described in the previous section may be one of the first signs of an organic disease. In such a situation, patients are advised to visit a doctor in order to exclude or confirm the presence of a pathology, to start treatment on time.

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Hiccups after eating

hiccups after eating

This pathology is an unpleasant, but not fatal deviation from the norm. This process occurs due to a reflex contraction of the diaphragm, which provokes a more impetuous inhalation of atmospheric air and a very rapid closure of the vocal cords, which are regulators of the volume of gas passing through the larynx. Such a process is accompanied by a rather specific, recognizable sound. Most often appears hiccups after eating . In this article, we will try to deal with this problem and find ways to stop it.

Causes of hiccups after eating

Spasm of the diaphragm – this process can bring a lot of discomfort and the causes of hiccups after eating may be different, but they are all associated with increased irritation of the nerve receptors of the vagus and sympathetic nerves “serving” the diaphragm.

Not only medical workers, but also the common man will not be superfluous to know what are causes of hiccups after eating :

• One of the sources of the considered discomfort are diseases of the cerebral cortex, affecting the areas that are responsible for the respiratory centers.
• Diseases affecting the nerve endings extending from the brain cells.
• Overeating can provoke the manifestation of hiccups.
• This may be a reaction of the human body to a specific food product, for example, hot spices, certain plant components with a specific smell.
• Hypothermia can also provoke hiccups, mainly for young children.
• Hiccups can cause too cold or, conversely, hot dishes.
• Incorrect diet: food in the “dry food”, food “on the go”.
• Causes of hiccups after eating can be associated with the individual characteristics of the body.
• Hiccups can also be one of the symptoms of a more severe pathology, such as myocardial infarction.
• Tumor of the digestive tract, both benign and malignant.
• Multiple diseases of the central nervous system.
• Hiccups after eating can be caused by pneumonia.
• Uremia – poisoning of the body with protein metabolism products due to disruption of the kidneys.
• Herniated disc.
• Increased intracranial pressure.
• Gastritis is an inflammatory process or degenerative changes in the mucous membrane inside the stomach.
• Consequence of a nervous tic.
• Hiccups after eating may occur in the postoperative period if surgery involved the spine or gastrointestinal tract.
• Neoplasms affecting the spinal cord.
• The cause of unpleasant reflex can be intravenous anesthesia with the use of the drug “Brietal” (sodium methohexital).
• This reflex can also be provoked by some everyday reasons, which can be of a periodic nature.
• The mood of the person with whom he sits at the table can influence the fact of occurrence of the considered discomfort. The digestive process is negatively affected by both a depressed and too excited state.
• The cause of hiccups after eating may also be neurotic. For example, excitement before a responsible exam, speaking in front of a full house.
• Traumatic brain injury.
• Encephalitis – inflammation of the membranes of the brain.
• But not only spasm of the diaphragm can provoke hiccups, but also muscle contractions affecting the esophagus. The reason for this process may be stagnant food.
• Diabetes mellitus.
• Ignoring basic nutrition rules: talking while eating, chewing food poorly, swallowing large portions, reading books and newspapers, watching TV or working on a computer, along with eating. Scattering attention to several things at once leads to poor digestion of food, and hence to hiccups.
• Eating in an unnatural position for the work of the digestive tract, when it is difficult to move food along the passage.
• Meningitis is an inflammatory process that affects the brain.

By itself, hiccups are harmless, but they can be an indicator that something has gone wrong in the body. And if such attacks become more frequent, this fact should not be ignored, because it can indicate the development of a rather severe pathology in the body. And how quickly it will be detected and adequate measures taken depends on the fate and life of a person.

Why hiccups start after eating

Probably, there is no person on Earth who at least once in his life would not be plagued by hiccups. It causes a lot of discomfort, but does not threaten human health. If hiccups appear once and rarely enough, then there is no pathology in this case. A little patience and within 1-3 minutes the attack will pass on its own, it will be enough to drink a few sips of water. So why does hiccups start after eating?

This question is asked by many, trying to find the answer to it on their own. The main cause of this pathological manifestation is irritation of the nerve endings of the diaphragm, less often – irritation of the walls of the esophagus. Under normal conditions, the diaphragm functions in its normal rhythm. Inhale – it “goes” down, allowing the breathing apparatus to take in the required amount of air. Exhalation – the diaphragm rises, pushing carbon dioxide out of the human body. If an irritating effect is exerted on her, the rhythm of work is lost, and she begins to move in jerks. Portions of incoming air are different. A sharp intake of a portion of air into the larynx, which is then supplied to the vocal cords, and we get a characteristic, well-known sound.

But this is the direct source of hiccups, and the reasons that provoke him to take this step are quite diverse. Sometimes it is enough to drink soda water, and hiccups are guaranteed – it all depends on the individual characteristics of the human body. Even in a healthy person, if no countermeasures are taken, this unpleasant process can last from five minutes to half an hour.

If the hiccups do not go away longer, you should seek the advice of a qualified doctor, as such symptoms may indicate a serious pathology in the patient.

There is also a conditional division of the hiccups that have arisen: reflex seizures are called episodic, caused by various living conditions. Prolonged hiccups are called seizures caused by one of the diseases of organic origin, while the transformation of one type into another does not occur.

Hiccups after eating in adults

This somewhat uncomfortable process is familiar to every person from an early age and, often, it is not taken seriously. “Someone remembers,” some will say. But if hiccups after eating in adults occur sporadically (celebrating a birthday the day before or going to barbecue with friends), then there is no point in worrying much, next time you just need to monitor the quantity and quality of the food you eat and there will be no problems with hiccups.

Reflex sharp contraction of the diaphragm is a physiological process. And for it to happen, there must be a good reason. And if this reason is similar to the one voiced above, then, indeed, it is advisable to monitor what and how you eat, not to overeat and not to overcool. But, if after analyzing the situation preceding the onset of hiccups after eating in adults, it is not possible to determine the cause of its appearance by the person himself, and the attacks do not go away for a long time, then you should not joke with such symptoms. The hiccup itself will not harm the human body, except that it will bring a few unpleasant minutes (or hours) to its owner, but it can signal a deeper and more serious pathology that affects his body.

If the body of an adult is healthy, and hiccups get it quite often, doctors call constant overeating and hence the stretching of the walls of the stomach one of the main reasons for this pathology. This fact causes hiccups in nine out of ten hiccups. Therefore, a culture of nutrition is very important, which must be instilled in a person from an early age.

Hiccups after eating in a child

A small children’s body is so vulnerable, and reacts to any external or internal stimulus. Especially often, parents have to observe hiccups in their babies, thinking that the child is simply overcooled. But hiccups after eating in a child can occur for other reasons. What are they and is there a need to sound the alarm about this?

Many young mothers are interested in the question: “Why does the baby hiccup and is it possible to help him get rid of hiccups faster?” Pediatricians explain this reflex physiological process by the fact that under the influence of certain factors, the epiglottic area spasms, preventing oxygen from passing through the respiratory tract normally. At the same time, the intercostal muscles and the diaphragm of the chest begin to contract incorrectly, from where such a familiar characteristic sound arises.

If it is cool in the room or outside and the baby starts to hiccup, do not rush to wrap him up – simply, due to the imperfection of thermoregulatory abilities, his body begins to adapt to the conditions surrounding it. A short period of time will be enough for the hiccups to go away on their own.

But most often you can observe hiccups after eating in a child. There are several reasons for this:

• The digestive tract, like the baby’s body, is not yet perfect and continues to grow and develop.
• In the process of feeding, it is necessary to ensure that the child chews food well.
• Due to their innate activity, many babies continue to spin at the table, doing a lot of other actions in parallel with food. At the same time, his attention is scattered, distracted from the process of eating food. In such a situation, the stomach is not ready to work, which provokes hiccups.
• It is worth making sure that the baby does not chat while eating. Together with food, he also swallows portions of air, which, trying to get out of the child’s body, lead to spasm of muscle tissues and vocal cords.
• Foods that are too dry should not be given to the child. An outdoor sandwich or a few biscuits can cause hiccups in a child.
• A baby can also hiccup from drunk fizzy drinks.

If a small child or schoolchild is prone to hiccups, it is not superfluous to consult a pediatrician. If any household factors are the cause of the discomfort, it is enough to exclude them from the baby’s life and the problem will be solved. If it is impossible to eliminate them, then you should try to keep the intensity of the stimulus to a minimum. It is likely that the child will grow up and this problem will go away by itself.

But if hiccups have organic roots, then it is urgently necessary to fully examine the baby so as not to miss any serious illness at an early stage. In any case, brushing aside the problem and self-medicating is not worth it. After all, children are not always able to say what worries them.

Hiccups in a newborn after eating

Sometimes pregnant women feel rhythmic pulsations in their abdomen. Asking a question to an obstetrician-gynecologist, usually, she gets the answer that it’s just her baby hiccups. Doctors know that the fetus, being still in the sixth or eighth week of development, can already get hiccups.

After the child is born, this problem does not go away, making young parents worry. Many of them believe that with hiccups, their baby begins to experience discomfort, pain symptoms, but pediatricians are in a hurry to assure such that hiccups do not bring any discomfort to the baby. The causes of this reflex process may be different, but most often hiccups occur in a newborn after eating.

Such a result of feeding can be:

• If the baby eats very actively and “thrashly”, simultaneously swallowing portions of air, which then try to leave the body.
• A similar situation arises if a young mother has too much milk, it flows quite actively and the child simply tries to swallow it all. In this situation, the mother should express some milk before feeding. But you shouldn’t be too zealous either. The more you drain breast milk, the more of it a woman’s body will produce by the next feeding.
• Another moment that can provoke hiccups in a newborn may be that after eating the baby’s stomach is full and begins to press on the diaphragm, which triggers the hiccup mechanism.
• When formula-fed, the cause of hiccups may be too large a hole in the nipple.

Reflex spasms are not entirely harmless, they can cause the baby to vomit profusely, and in some cases even vomiting, which prevents him from falling asleep, which quickly exhausts the child’s nervous system. Often occurring hiccups, immediately after a meal, should alert the young mother, perhaps she is not feeding her child correctly, and there may be another, more serious reason. But only a specialist can answer this question.

Diagnosis of hiccups after eating

If the problem under consideration begins to bother a child or an adult, then you should not postpone going to the doctor. Diagnosis of hiccups after eating includes:

• Analysis of patient complaints. The doctor is interested in how long the hiccups appeared, how often, intensively and for a long time it gets the patient.
• The doctor takes anamnesis. He is especially interested in the presence of diabetes mellitus, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and pathologies that provoke an increase in blood glucose levels.
• If necessary, the patient will have to consult a psychiatrist, neurologist, surgeon and/or gastroenterologist.

Treatment of hiccups after eating

Hiccups, as a symptomatology, are not specific, clearly indicating a specific disease. If there are isolated cases of its occurrence, then there is no need to introduce any therapeutic treatment. The specialist can only advise the patient to reconsider his attitude to the regimen and quality of nutrition. If an attack nevertheless happened, doctors advise in this situation to take a few sips of water or, after taking a deep breath, hold the exhalation for as long as a person can withstand.

If we turn to the experience of our ancestors, then there you can find a lot of simple, but quite effective tips.

• If hiccups start, you can take a piece of sour or bitter fruit (grapefruit, lemon, etc.) into your mouth, lemon juice or a little diluted vinegar will do.
• You can drink a large cup of water in small sips after eating. You should drink slowly, measuredly. If this technique is not very effective, you can do the same, only by tilting your torso forward (as if reaching for an outstretched arm).
• Less pleasant, but no less effective, is the method when, by pressing on the tongue at its base, the gag reflex is evoked.

If an organic pathology has been diagnosed, then the treatment of hiccups after eating includes therapy aimed at stopping the disease that causes discomfort. For example, if the cause of hiccups lies in a pathological violation of the integrity of the walls or contents of the stomach (gastritis), then the gastroenterologist will prescribe a full course of treatment for this disease. If the source of hiccups is meningitis, then effective measures of complex therapy are prescribed by a neuropathologist.

Medical statistics show that quite often the cause of hiccups is an increased stretching of the gastric walls and an excess of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the patient’s blood. Sometimes it is sufficient to remove such gases from the digestive tract. For this, drugs are prescribed that relax the muscles of the esophageal valve. These can be mint drops, motilium, domperidone, cerucal, metoclopramide or domrid.

Cerucal is recommended to be taken half an hour before meals. An adult patient is prescribed a dosage – one tablet three to four times throughout the day. For adolescents who are already 14 years old, the amount of the drug administered is determined by the dose from half to the whole tablet, taken two to three times during the day. If necessary, the dosage can be increased, but it should not exceed two tablets (20 mg) or six tablets per day at a time.

Based on the clinical picture, the attending physician may prescribe the administration of this drug in the form of intramuscular and intravenous injections.

Adult patients and children over 14 years of age one to three times a day, one ampoule, the volume of which is 10 mg.

For children from two years to 14 years – the recommended amount is calculated as 0.1 mg of the drug per kilogram of the baby’s weight. If therapeutic efficacy requires high doses, they can be increased, but the maximum dosage should not exceed the daily figure of 0.5 mg per kilogram of body weight of the child.

This drug is contraindicated for use if the patient has an increased individual intolerance to the component composition of the drug, as well as if there is a history of intestinal obstruction or perforation, pheochromocytoma, internal bleeding, a tendency to epileptic seizures, convulsions, hypersensitivity to sulfites, bronchial asthma. Do not prescribe the drug to women in the first trimester of pregnancy or during the period of breastfeeding a newborn baby and children under two years of age.

Muscle relaxants, such as baclosan, baclofen, and lioresal, are also used to “fight” hiccups.

Baclofen is administered to the body with food intake. The starting dosage is determined in the amount of 5 mg (one tablet) or half a tablet with an active substance concentration of 10 mg, taken three times during the day. Then the dosage begins to increase at intervals of three days. Adult patients are usually given an increase of 30-75 mg daily.

If it becomes necessary to use high therapeutic doses (from 0.075 to 0.1 g), it will be easier to drink tablets with a concentration of 25 mg of the active substance. The maximum allowable daily amount of the drug is 0.1 g.

For children aged one to two years, the daily dosage is prescribed in the range of 10-20 mg.

Babies from two to six daily dosage is prescribed in the range of 20 – 30 mg.

For children from six to ten years old, the daily dosage is determined in the range of 30-60 mg.

For adolescents over ten years old, the calculation of the daily dosage is carried out according to the formula 1.5 – 2 mg per kilogram of the child’s weight.

A contraindication to taking the drug is the tendency of the patient’s body to epileptic seizures, in Parkinson’s disease, in case of increased intolerance to the components of the drug, as well as in the chronic form of kidney dysfunction.

With increased caution, it is necessary to prescribe this drug if the patient has a history of cerebrovascular insufficiency, atherosclerotic lesions of the brain vessels, with peptic ulcers of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

To cope with hiccups, the attending physician may introduce dimethicone, Gascon drop, zeolate into the treatment protocol.

Dimethicone is carried to the preparations of the group of adsorbents. The drug is recommended to use one to two tablets after each meal and immediately before going to bed. Or one tablespoon of the drug in the form of a gel, taken before meals three to six times throughout the day.

Dimethicone contraindications include only hypersensitivity to its component composition. In the event of an allergic reaction, the drug should be discontinued by prescribing another drug in this group, for example, corticosteroids.

If hiccups are particularly persistent, the attending physician has to introduce antipsychotic drugs into the therapy protocol, which effectively affect the reflex centers in the patient’s cerebral cortex. For example, chlorpromazine, chlorpromazine, or haloperidol may be prescribed.

The neuroleptic chlorpromazine is injected into the patient’s body before meals. In this case, the minimum recommended dosages are prescribed – one to three tablets taken two to three times throughout the day. If therapeutically necessary, the dosage can be gradually increased. The duration of taking the drug is determined by the attending doctor individually.

Contraindications for taking this group of drugs are quite extensive and are described in more detail in the instructions attached to the drug. But the main limitations are hypersensitivity to chlorpromazine and / or other components of chlorpromazine, severe renal and / or hepatic dysfunction, a violation in the hematopoietic organs, disorders affecting the spinal cord or brain, an acute phase of a traumatic brain injury, a severe stage of cardiovascular pathologies, cholelithiasis and urolithiasis, thromboembolism, myxedema, angle-closure glaucoma and some other pathologies. You should not prescribe this drug to women during pregnancy or lactation, as well as to children whose age has not reached one year.

But since in nine cases out of ten the patient has a stretching of the walls of the stomach, which is the result of excessive food intake, the first thing the doctor recommends is to reconsider your diet and diet.

Prevention of hiccups after eating

This reflex discomfort can be of both physiological and psychological genesis, so the prevention of hiccups after eating includes simple but effective tips that allow a person to protect his body in both of these directions.

• The first and most relevant advice is to follow a food culture:
  • Do not overeat.
  • Portions should be small and meals should be frequent.
  • When eating, one should not talk, read newspapers, watch TV, play computer games.
  • Chew food thoroughly.
  • Do not eat “on the go” and “dry food”.
• The atmosphere of the meal should be calm. You should not sit down to eat if a person is excited or, conversely, depressed.
• If hiccups after eating appeared as a result of worries about the upcoming responsible event, you should try to calm down and switch your attention to another subject.
• You can find your own, individual way to distract yourself, for example, tie a bright ribbon on your wrist or draw a funny face on the inside of your palm, and, if necessary, look at it.
• Some try to scare the hiccup. This should not be done. A person (both a child and an adult) runs the risk of getting a mental disorder instead of hiccups.
• A simple exercise will also help to calm down: you need to take a deep breath and try not to exhale, as long as you have enough patience, then slowly, slowly, exhale. At the same time, it would not hurt to divert your thoughts to something pleasant.
• If a responsible event is planned, taking a sedative medication can be a preventive measure against hiccups after eating. It can be a tablet of any sedative drug or a simple tea made from lemon balm, valerian, thyme, motherwort and other herbs that have sedative effects. You can hold a glycine tablet under your tongue.
• Outdoor walks are also effective.
• Complete rest.
• Hypothermia should be avoided.

These simple tips will help you forget about hiccups forever, unless of course its cause is one of the diseases of an organic nature.

Prediction of hiccups after eating

It all depends on the source that triggers the mechanism that provokes the process of hiccups. If the cause of this symptom is one of the diseases, then the prognosis of hiccups after eating directly depends on the timeliness and effectiveness of the treatment, but, mostly, it is positive.

If the attacks of reflex spasms are of a domestic nature, then it is enough for a person to reconsider his lifestyle and listen to the above tips and the prognosis of hiccups after eating, in this case, will be simply wonderful. A person will forever forget about such a nuisance as hiccups.

What person does not like to eat well. But for some, this “good” translates into huge amounts of food consumed, for others, it’s small portions of gourmet dishes. But hiccups after eating can “get” both of them. If hiccups appear rarely, from time to time, then you should not worry, you just need to reconsider your diet, maybe some foods just do not suit you.