This can definitely be considered as a matter of immense curiosity among people across the world. We might have heard this statement a number of times while growing up, and might have wondered how much accuracy it has. So, here we will be discussing the answer to the question, does your heart stop when you sneeze.

A lot of readers might think that this statement is completely true, and that our heart does stop when we sneeze. But, it doesn’t sound quite believable. If our heart was to stop every time we sneezed, then we might have been dead by now! But in spite of these doubts, there are people out there who support the claim that our heart stops while we sneeze

On the other hand, there are some people out there who are completely against this idea, and believe that such a thing can never happen. Here, we will be arriving at the correct answer to this question regarding sneezing, and its relation with the heart function. So, without wasting further time, let’s see what happens to our heart while we sneeze. Hopefully, this discussion will help in satiating your curiosity regarding this topic.

What happens when you sneeze?

Before discussing does your heart stop when you sneeze, let’s take a look at the changes which occur in our body when we sneeze.

First of all, when you are about to sneeze, you tend to inhale very deeply. This deep inhalation leads to the build-up of some extra pressure in the chest area. As a result, the blood flow towards the heart will slow down.

The slow blood flow will lead to a decrease in the blood pressure. Eventually, this will lead to an increase in the number of heart beats per minute (BPM).

Thereafter, the throat will close up. Most of us might have a clear idea regarding the sensation that we have in our throat area while we are about to sneeze or cough.

This closing up of the throat actually helps the abdominal cavity to maintain the intrathoracic pressure which has already built up. This will further help in expelling all the air during the sneeze.

Then, all of a sudden, you exhale in a violent manner. During sneezing, you will be able to release all the pressure that was built up in your abdominal cavity very quickly.

Finally, the blood flow towards the heart speeds up, and you will be able to observe a rise in your blood pressure. This will help in lowering your BPM, and bringing it back to the normal levels.

See does your heart stop when you sneeze...

We have gone through the process of sneezing in detail. Now, let’s unravel the mysteries behind sneezing and the heart stopping.

Even though a lot of people might hold the opinion that our heart stops while sneezing, this can be considered as a mere assumption which is totally wrong! In other words, our heart doesn’t stop while we sneeze. However, it might get briefly thrown off its rhythm during the sneeze.

The sudden pressure changes, as well as the changes in the blood flow will introduce a small interruption in the heartbeat. This is simply because of the fact that our heart needs to compensate for the sudden increase in blood pressure which occurs while sneezing.

In addition to that, you should keep in mind that the vagus nerve, which establishes a connection between your brain and large intestine, is also responsible for this brief cardiac interruption.

The most important function of this vagus nerve is to reduce the heart rate. Whenever this nerve gets stimulated because of a sneeze, its first and foremost response will be to lower the heart rate.

Because of this decrease in heart BPM, as well as the increase in blood pressure, the heart tends to get thrown off its rhythm. This happens for just a second, and your heart gets back to its normal working condition immediately.

Thus, we can ascertain that while sneezing, our heart doesn’t stop completely. What happens during a sneeze is that our heart gets thrown off its normal rhythm for a second, and then gets back to normal soon.

Sneeze syncope

Now that we know, does your heart stop when you sneeze, let’s take a look at the condition known as sneeze syncope.

Sneeze syncope can be considered as a very rare condition in which the decrease in blood pressure or heart beat which occurs during sneezing tends to knock the person out.

Sneeze syncope should not frighten you as this condition is extremely uncommon, and is rarely reported. In fact, the last reported case dates back to 2014.

In this incident, a person experienced sneeze syncope and it was reported in a case study in Case Reports in Neurological Medicine.

In most cases, the sneeze syncope is not that serious, and is caused by an underlying condition. If this condition is identified and treated accordingly, then the instances of sneeze syncope will also subside.

Some of these underlying conditions include using beta-blocker eye drops, tumor associated with the heart valves, mitral valve prolapse, etc

If this condition is occurring because of any medications that you are taking, then it will stop itself after you restrain yourself from taking that particular medication.

If a tumor is causing this issue, then you should consider removing it. This will help in preventing the instances of sneeze syncope.

Conclusion

We have discussed the answer to the question, does your heart stop when you sneeze. So, we can assure that while sneezing our heart doesn’t stop, and hence, we need not worry about dying because of a sneeze! During sneezing, our heart just gets thrown off from its normal rhythm. This happens for a second, and thereafter your heart will immediately start functioning without any sort of delay. Sneeze syncope is a very rare issue, and it cannot be regarded as a direct effect of sneezing. Different underlying issues cause sneeze syncope, and it can be managed by treating these underlying conditions.