The Cure is Free
Everyone and their mum has a "cure" for hiccups. What if I told you that there is actually a well-tested solution?
Everyone and their mum has a "cure" for hiccups. You've likely heard of drinking water, hopping on one leg, or getting a fright. What if I told you that none of those actually work, and there is actually a well-tested solution?
I was taught this technique by a friend when I was about ten years old, and it's worked for me ever since. It also costs nothing, and can be administered anywhere. However, everyone I tried to share it with seemed unconvinced, too unconvinced to even try it. Well, I stumbled upon this article in The Atlantic and felt vindicated.
Essentially, the technique to eliminate hiccups is called Supra-Supramaximal Inspiration (SSMI).[1] In short, these are the steps:
- Empty your lungs as much as you can by breathing out fully.
- Breathe in as deeply as you comfortably can. This is your first full inhalation.
- Do not exhale. Hold your breath at full capacity for 10 seconds.
- Without exhaling, take in a little more air—just a small inhale to expand your lungs further.
- Hold for another 5 seconds
- Top up again
- Take in another small breath, again without exhaling.
- Hold briefly, then exhale fully
- After this final breath-hold (no specific time required), exhale slowly and completely.
This method has been shown to work around 84% of the time,[2] which to be fair, is more effective than pharmaceutical interventions overall.[3]
It is also so successful that we have a product being sold for £13 that basically wraps up this technique in the shape of a straw. See here: https://hiccaway.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoot9pztNTfkouksLsTPy3eOd-7Bnj4FcX-LBPA4Psn467LD6hKU. ↩︎
The 3 patients in the study contributing to that last 16% were unable to hold their breath or tolerate inflating their lungs. ↩︎
Only about 65% of medicine seems to show clinically meaningful effect. https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-015-0494-1. ↩︎
