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Dear Derek:
Think of what would happen if your vacuum cleaner went into "reverse" and you have a pretty good
idea of how a sneeze works. After all, sneezing blasts dust, pollen, cold air, and other irritating
things right out of your nose at amazing speeds! It's a nifty, self-cleaning mechanism that works
like this: when you feel a tickle behind your nostrils, a nerve in your nose relays a "red alert"
to your brain. This tells your brain to act as the coach in a big team effort--it directs muscles
from your belly, chest, diaphragm (the large muscle under your lungs that makes you breathe), vocal
chords, throat, and even eyelids to work together in just the right order to get rid of those
irritants and set that sneeze into motion! Your chest muscles in particular pack quite a
punch--they squeeze your chest with enough force to shoot air up from your lungs and out through
your nose at speeds of up to 100 miles per hour! And you do it all without even thinking since this
whole process is a reflex. That means it's controlled by an unconscious part of your brain.
Now that you have all the dirt on sneezing, here's something that'll "enlighten" you
further--bright light can also make people sneeze! About one out of every three people sneezes when
exposed to bright light. These people are called "photic" sneezers (photic means light), and they
inherit this ability from their parents. Actually, most people are somewhat sensitive to light, so
sun and fun may trigger a sneeze in just about anyone. Remember the last time you were right about
to let loose with a sneeze, only to have it get "stuck?" Next time, try stepping out into some
sunshine--it just might send that stuck sneeze soarin' out of your schnoz!
Signed,
Wendell
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