Life Sciences > Physiology & Medicine

Why do we sneeze?

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chris:
quote:Originally posted by mm

I once saw a show on TV showing incredible things. One man was trying to sqeeze milk from the hole in his eye as far as he could. He eventually got to 3 metres ish. That was  mad though, i think.


Hi mm, welcome to the forum.

Nice thought - firing milk from your eyes. Sounds even more bizarre than Angel's lizard (which I've not heard of, perhaps someone can enlighten us...)

Anyway, yes, this milk story highlights the anatomy of your eyes / nose. Tears produced by the lacrimal glands run across the eye and down 'plug holes' on the eyelids at the corners of the eyes closest to the nose.

The tears collect in a lacrimal sac (a dilatation of the duct below the eye) and then drain down the nasolacrimal duct to the nose. This is why your nose runs when you cry. Conversely, when you sneeze, or blow your nose hard, the pressure wave pushes the tears back in the opposite direction and they wash into your eyes, making them run.

Chris

"I never forget a face, but in your case I'll make an exception"
 - Groucho Marx

Qing:
that explains why sometimes when you sneeze during eating you might have some unpleasant experience of which some food granuales enter you nose. that's really awful![xx(]
by the way, my sneeze is better now[:)] but still on hay fever tablet.
thanks everyone.[:D]

Qing

Quantumcat:
If you hold your nose tightly shut, shut your eyes, close your mouth and sort of push hard as if you were trying to snort, air comes out your tear ducts along with a whistling noise.

Am I dead? Am I alive? I'm both!

Exodus:
Its never done that with me... my ears just pop.

Resident Tour Operator - The Naked Scientists

Qing:
I tried it,and felt like air comes out the tear ducts but without any whistling noise. I think I'll ask some other people to try it as well.

Qing

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