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Sneezing Is The Best Thing That Ever Happens To You

Sneezing is great for you! Contrary to the myths and misinformation you may have heard or read about, sneezing is actually a rather great thing. Furthermore, I’m sure that if we weren’t born with the sneezing reflex, we would have had to invent it. So sneeze and be happy. Your eyeballs won’t pop out, your heart won’t stop, unwelcome company is not on the way to you, and it is not going to rain. Especially relevant, sneezes travel at over 100 miles per hour and can send over 100,000 germs into the air. While you are ridding yourself of germs, not correctly covering your sneeze spreads germs as far as 11.5 feet away.

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 See how a sneeze can launch germs much farther than 6 feet

High-speed photography shows a sneeze can blast saliva and mucus well beyond current social distancing guidelines, and tiny droplets can remain in the air longer than thought.

 What 'Ah-Choo!' Can Do For You

We all know that sneezing spreads cold viruses. But it turns out that sneezes actually do some good — for the sneezer.

 Why Do People Sneeze in Twos and Threes?

Sneezes never seem to be lonely. As soon as you expel your first mighty “achoo,” there’s usually another sneeze lurking right behind to follow it up. For some people, there may be two, three, or even 10 that come after that original sneeze, making for an awful lot of “bless yous” from well-wishers nearby. So why is it that our sneezes seem to adhere to the buddy system? Or why do people sneeze at all?

Articles of Interest

How to Sneeze Quieter So You Stop Alarming People in Public

If you’re the type of sneezer whose achoos can pierce an eardrum, it’s important to know that you don’t have to live this way. You don’t have to be the kind of person who sneezes so loudly that it terrifies nearby animals.

Are You a Sneeze Snob?

You know when you're in a public place--like at Starbucks--and the person in front of you lets out a humongous sneeze ... in your air space: Do you flash her a dirty look and try your hardest not to breathe the air around you for the next few seconds. Or do you just shrug it off?

Ask Smithsonian: Why Do We Sneeze?

Whether you sneeze because of a cold, or after sex or a good meal or in sunlight, the good old Achoo is the body’s way of ridding itself of irritants.

Atishoo! The science of sneezing properly

Think you know how to sneeze? Think again. According to American disease experts, we should be covering our mouths with the crook of our elbows – not our hands

Don’t Stifle Your Sneeze

“Sneezing generates significant pressure in the upper airway,” said Bruce Stewart, MD, an ear, nose and throat doctor with Banner Health in Tucson, Arizona. “If you block the release of this pressure by trying to hold in the sneeze it can cause a rupture of your eardrums, irritation of the throat and, even in severe cases, rupture blood vessels in your eyes or brain.”

Here's Looking Achoo! Debunking The Sneeze

For such a commonplace bodily function, the sneeze has messed with our minds (and noses) for centuries. It will kill us, it won't kill us. We'll have bad luck, we'll have good luck. Watch out for Satan, he's wily and knows how to get into your nasal membranes. Did you have too much to eat? Are you sad? Do you have a weak heart?

How far does a cough or a sneeze actually travel?

The important thing to understand here is that scientists really only have estimates for how far coughing and sneezing can spread germs, not hard numbers. Some of this might even depend on how forcefully a person coughs or sneezes. (Scream sneezers, we’re looking at you. But we also know it’s not your fault.)

Lowering the Volume of a Sneeze

Seems like every workplace has at least one person with a really loud sneeze—a teeth-rattling, ear-splitting, high-velocity explosion. Is it possible for high-decibel sneezers to turn down the volume? For the answer, we turned to Jayakar Nayak, assistant professor of otolaryngology at the Stanford Sinus Center.

Quick Question: Why Do We Sneeze?

People’s sneezing tendencies can be almost as individual as their fingerprints. Some produce earth-shattering blasts. Others emit delicate “ahchoos!” But why do we sneeze in the first place? No matter where you fall on the sneezing spectrum, the answer is more interesting than you might expect and will leave you pretty impressed with your body.

STILL Sneezing? Five Tips to Help You Survive This Never-ending Allergy Season

Does pollen season seem never-ending? 5 Tips from an allergist.

The Dangers of Sneezing: A Review of Injuries

Sneezing is an almost universal daily phenomenon as a reflex to evacuate irritants from the nasal cavities. An autonomic-controlled buildup of intrathoracic pressure against a closed glottis followed by sudden release results in a burst of 1 kPa of air through the upper airway. Active intervention to limit a sneeze can be deleterious.

The Science Behind Sneezing: Why Do We Sneeze?

Sneezing is a common, often uncontrollable reflex that most people experience at some point in their lives. It can seem simple—your body reacts by expelling air forcefully through your nose and mouth—but there’s actually a fascinating science behind this natural phenomenon. Sneezing serves an important role in protecting our bodies, but when it happens too frequently, it can become more of an issue.

The Scientific Importance and Health Benefits of Sneezing

Sneezing, a seemingly mundane and involuntary bodily function, often elicits responses ranging from polite gestures of "bless you" to mild annoyance. However, beyond being a social nicety or a mere reflex, sneezing serves crucial scientific and health purposes.

Why Do We Sneeze?

Sure, they blast out germs and other unwanted intruders, but sneezes have another, just discovered purpose, a new study says.

Why do we sneeze? Why do your eyes close? A pediatric nurse explains the science of sneezing

Despite a popular myth that sneezing with your eyes open will make them pop out, it’s actually possible to keep your eyes open when you sneeze. Closing your eyes during a sneeze is an autonomic reflex. This means that your body does it without you needing to consciously think about it. Scientists believe that your body makes your eyes close when you sneeze to decrease the likelihood of germs getting into them.

Why Holding in a Sneeze Can Be Dangerous

A 34-year-old man squeezed while holding nose closed, leading to a tear in his throat and a stay in the hospital.

Why You Shouldn't Hold That Sneeze

You can probably think of a dozen places where sneezing seems kind of, well, uncomfortable. Let me count the ways: at dinner with a new guy, while cooking dinner for new guy, in a job interview, in a tight crowded place, and I could go on. So hold it, or let it out?

You Asked: Is It Bad to Hold in a Sneeze?

Spend some time reading medical case studies—a great way to ruin a pleasant morning, by the way—and you’ll be shocked at the unlikely ways people manage to hurt themselves. Focus on sneeze-related accidents, and you’ll notice a trend: Bad things happen when people hold in their sneezes. A fractured larynx, acute cervical pain and facial nerve injuries are just a few of the documented mishaps caused by a stifled achoo.