March 23, 2001

9:22 AM

Did you sneeze before breakfast this morning? Well, expect some exciting news... this according to a page of sneezing folklore. (I might add that sneezing feels mighty nice.)
posted by hijinx (7 comments total)

If by "feels mighty nice" you really mean "feels like your sinuses are being turned inside out and extracted through your nostrils," then I agree completely. Sneezing does feel mighty nice.
posted by kindall at 1:45 PM on March 23, 2001

This definitely has me more excited about my hay fever.
posted by ttrendel at 2:25 PM on March 23, 2001

hijinx:

Bless you.

(Sorry, but it had to be said.)
posted by mac at 2:29 PM on March 23, 2001

One piece of folklore that I didn't see there: in Japan, when you sneeze, it's supposed to mean that someone is talking about you.
posted by Jeanne at 2:49 PM on March 23, 2001

Apparently, I'm very lucky and I need to buy a bigger mailbox. Either that or I have allergies.
posted by gimli at 3:01 PM on March 23, 2001

Bright light makes me sneeze.
posted by sudama at 7:23 PM on March 23, 2001

Bright light makes me sneeze.

Ditto. I never really thought about it, but between MF and Google, well, I guess I can't avoid learning something today. :)

So, sneezing in response to sunlight is known as Photic Sneezing, and seems to be caused either by the eyes going all squinty and releasing tears into the nasal cavity, or by associated optical and nasal fibers in the mid-brain. The impulses traveling up the optic nerve trigger a "sympathetic discharge" causing the sneeze. (The nerve one is the more popular/likely explanation.) Furthermore, "the number of sneezes was usually 2 or 3, but could be
as many as 43." Neat.
posted by Lirp at 9:31 PM on March 23, 2001