Why we close our eyes when we sneeze? (1 Viewer)

JuVeMaNia86

Junior Member
Jan 8, 2005
413
#1
Strange but true...
Can you sneeze with your eyes open?

I always used to believe that if I kept my eyes open when I sneezed, my eyeballs would be propelled out of my head with the 100mph force of the sneeze and be lost forever. I, in fact, really had nothing to worry about as firstly, shutting your eyes when you sneeze is a reflex action. This means that your brain is hardwired to do it without you even having to think about it- the same way that you will remove your hand from a hot stove as soon as you touch it. We can bypasses the conscious bits of our brain and tell the muscles what to do immediately if we need to act quickly.

Now some people don't possess the reflex that makes you shut your eyes when sneezing and can sneeze with their eyes open- they still have eyeballs so is there really any reason for this reflex? The answer to that is probably not. So even if I could manage to hold my eyes open when I sneeze, they would stay put. The eyes are really well attached to your head via muscles and the optic nerve (Some strange people can make their eyes bulge out of their head which, although looking odd, doesn't lead to their eyeballs falling out onto the floor and serves to prove how well attached they really are). So the eyelid plays very little part in holding your eyes in when you sneeze.

So why do we still do it? The thing is, no one really nose (he he). Some people have said it is to stop nose gunk from flying into our eyes and giving us an infection. However, the eyes have really good defenses against germs so this probably isn't the case. Maybe it is because we tense lots of our face muscles before we sneeze and the eye muscles are tensed as a byproduct. Or it could have no reason. The eyes and nose nerves are intertwined and stimulation of one can lead to a response from the others. This 'cross-wiring' is what happens when some people sneeze when looking at bright lights.

Did you know: Apparently the first sign of the plague used to be sneezing, so people would say 'bless you' if they heard you sneeze (you were probably going to die so they were trying to be nice). Sneezing these days doesn't usually warn of something as horrid as the plague but we still say 'bless you' anyway

Now , Why we close our eyes when we sneeze? ( post ur opinion )
 

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swag

L'autista
Administrator
Sep 23, 2003
84,776
#2
Bizarre topic. But I'm in just that mood, so I'll play along...

Because back in the day when we evolved from tree-swinging primates, our non-eye-closing cousins became extinct from going blind due to their involuntary head motion into branches, twigs, leaves, and high power lines. ;)
 
Jan 7, 2004
29,704
#8
++ [ originally posted by swag ] ++
Bizarre topic. But I'm in just that mood, so I'll play along...

Because back in the day when we evolved from tree-swinging primates, our non-eye-closing cousins became extinct from going blind due to their involuntary head motion into branches, twigs, leaves, and high power lines. ;)

when you put it this way, i dont think i believe in evolution

somebody should try to keep their eyes open while sneezing
 

Ramin

vBookie Champion
Nov 18, 2003
4,728
#11
++ [ originally posted by Don Bes ] ++



when you put it this way, i dont think i believe in evolution

somebody should try to keep their eyes open while sneezing
If you concentrate before sneezing, you could do it without closing your eyes. And no, your eyes wont pop out.
 

gray

Senior Member
Moderator
Apr 22, 2003
30,260
#12
actually I've tried opening my eyes while sneezing... several times in fact :embarass:

I found that it just prevents me from sneezing and it goes away (one of the most unsatisfying feelings in the world)
 

Dan

Back & Quack
Mar 9, 2004
9,290
#13
Closing our eyes helps the nose to empty easier. Just try blowing your nose in midair with your eyes open and eyes closed and see the difference.
 

Desmond

Senior Member
Jul 12, 2002
8,938
#14
++ [ originally posted by gray ] ++
I found that it just prevents me from sneezing and it goes away (one of the most unsatisfying feelings in the world)
Indeed!

Which is why I always prefer sneezing to pinching my nose and supressing it.
 

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