Doctor turns a McFlurry straw into hiccup cure!
This invention is not just some money-making nonsense, it actually does work.
Everyone can agree: hiccups are the worst!
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There is nothing enjoyable about them, sometimes they can go on for what seems like an eternity and even be quite painful.
Generally, they are NOT a fun time.
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"Helpful" tips have been passed down through generations and can include anything from scaring the inflicted, drinking massive amounts of cold water or pulling your knees to your chest and lean forward.
Very few, if any, of these methods and home remedies have ever been fully scientifically proven to work for all hiccup sufferers.
Until now!
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Dr Ali Seifi, a neurointensivist from the University of Texas, has invented a life-changing device that will help anyone get rid of those annoying hiccups.
Seifi knows how hiccups can often be debilitating. People in intensive care who have suffered head trauma can suffer from constant hiccuping and it is also a very common side-effect amongst cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
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And these people certainly don't want to spend time/waste time on sucking lemons and contorting their bodies into strange positions.
Seifi thought about this and decided to invent something as simple as a special hiccup straw. The only difference between his HiccAway Straw and a normal straw is how hard you have to suck through it.
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First of all: what is a hiccup?
According to mayoclinic.org "Hiccups are involuntary contractions of the diaphragm — the muscle that separates your chest from your abdomen and plays an important role in breathing. Each contraction is followed by a sudden closure of your vocal cords, which produces the characteristic "hic" sound."
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How does this $14 reusable HiccAway straw work?
Seifi recently released his latest research in the JAMA Network Open journal and it states that this straw works nine out of ten times, which gives it a 92% success rate.
The diaphragm keeps being occupied by our intention of suctioning the water. Then, the brain forgets to keep spasming that diaphragm.
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While the medical part of this invention is very interesting, we were shocked to find out that the HiccAway was inspired by Dr Seifi's son's McFlurry straw!
He told Insider that the inspiration and the very, very first prototype was made all thanks to the McFlurry straw.
And the resemblance is there.
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After creating a few HiccAway's, Seifi and his team conducted a study by deploying 290 of these devices to people around the world and waited patiently as they began hiccuping and used the device.
Out of the 290 devices used, 249 hiccuppers not only said it worked but that they preferred it to any home remedy.
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The next step is to truly ensure and prove that it's not a gimmick of fluke, so a gold-standard randomized controlled trial with the help of hiccup experts in Switzerland and Japan will be conducted.
How exciting that hiccups could soon be a thing of the past, no longer causing you any pain or embarrassment, and it's all thanks to a super smart doctor and a McDonald's straw!
Main image courtesy of @HiccAway/Instagram