There could be many reasons why you experience hiccups followed by burps. It could be that your body has a lot of air to release, or maybe your anxiety is taking a toll on you. One of the most common things people do is list what triggers them to have hiccup burps and minimize or exclude those from their diet and lifestyle. You can also try to avoid eating solid food or drinks that may irritate your esophagus. A few changes in your diet, like switching to lean meats, avoiding junk foods, and doing yoga may also help. However, if you experience nonstop hiccup burps, it may be that you have underlying health conditions.
It sure is scary to experience something as weird as hiccupping and then burping. But, unless your doctor makes a diagnosis then, it couldn’t be that serious.
You may want to give time to your body and let the hiccup burps go away on their own. Please check on your doctor when your condition gets worse.
Do you hiccup and then burp?
Some people experience having hiccups followed by a loud belch/burp. Unfortunately, there’s still no known explanation for why this may happen to you. However, your diet, emotions/behaviors, and/or any underlying health conditions could be a factor here.
If you experience having hiccups and then you burp or a little bit combination of the two. You can try to monitor yourself and take note of what triggers you to have one.
Below are some of the things you can do to help you lessen having hiccup burps.
- Try not eating solid foods for a few days. If you’re experiencing hiccupping then burping at present, you can try to switch to foods that are semi-liquid in texture like porridge instead of cooked rice or choose to always have soup in your meals.
- Do not think of anything else when you’re eating. You have to focus on your meals and not think of getting the hiccup burps again. Chew your food properly, especially if you’re eating solid foods.
- Drink enough amount of water before and after meals. As much as possible, avoid choking on your food as it may trigger the hiccup burps.
- Avoid any fried, salty, and spicy food. You may want to take note of what kind of food triggers you to have hiccup burps and avoid including it on your diet for at least a month. See if you get better within that period.
- Avoid alcohol, chocolates, citrus fruits or juices, or tomato-based food. You may want to refrain from having food that causes irritation in your throat or esophagus.
- Meditate and do yoga exercises. Stress and anxiety could be a great factor here. If you assume you have one, you can always try to do simple breathing exercises. Give time to your mind and body even, just for half an hour every day.
- Eat lean meats, cold-water fish, tofu, beans, and use olive oil. This type of food will help you get all the good nutrients you need. You may add food supplements and vitamins to your diet too.
- Try using herbs like cranberry and peppermint. You may drink it as tea. These will ease the feeling in your throat while keeping your mouth and digestive system healthy.
These are just a few of the hundred things that people do when they experience having hiccup burps. If it seems like it is interrupting your normal daily activities, please schedule a check-up with your doctor.
Unless they make a diagnosis, you won’t really know if your hiccup burps are symptoms of any underlying health conditions.
Your doctor may try to recommend you to take diagnostic tests in your gastrointestinal tract which, may include the following:
- Upper GI endoscopy
- CT scan on your chest or abdomen
- Esophageal manometry
- Esophagram or a series of X-rays on your esophagus
Some of the possible causes of your hiccup burps include;
- Problems in your gallbladder. If you have it or any medical history of complications in your GI tract then, your hiccup burps could be one of the symptoms. Some people find that their kind of diet triggers them to experience the same thing.
- Inflammation in your esophagus. This is also known as esophagitis. This is caused by damage in your esophagus resulting in difficulty in swallowing and/or chest pain.
- Esophageal spasms or motility disorder. This may be due to abnormal contractions in your esophagus or its failure to contract and deliver food to your stomach.
- Hiatal hernia. This occurs when the upper region of your stomach pushes toward the opening of your diaphragm which causes pain in your chest area.
- Acid reflux. This happens when some of the acids in your stomach move back into your esophagus.
Why do I hiccup?
You may have experience hiccupping in the middle of your meal or a conversation or even out of nowhere. When you breathe in air, the muscles in your chest contract and your diaphragm moves downward, making more space for your lungs to expand and fill in the air.
Conversely, when you breathe out, your diaphragm moves upward and pushes air out of your chest. However, this pattern can get out of place. This loses the normal rhythm of your diaphragm and the muscles in your chest.
When you breathe in air while your diaphragm loses its normal pace, you will most likely send a rush of air into your lungs.
When this happens, your vocal cords will abruptly close to stop it. Thus, you make the weird hiccupping sound.
Below are some of the most common reasons why you experience hiccupping:
- Eating (fatty and spicy foods) or drinking (sodas and alcohol) too much and too quickly. This will cause pressure in your stomach which results in swelling. When this happens, it will affect and irritate your diaphragm thus, causing you to hiccup.
- Smoking and chewing gum. These kinds of habits will make you swallow a lot of air and cause hiccups. Smoking is also bad for your lungs.
- A sudden change of temperature in the stomach. This happens when you’re eating too fast, especially very cold and hot food or drinks. This will cause irritation and distension in your stomach.
- Extreme emotions. If you experience stress, anxiety, or excitement, this will cause a stir in the nerves between your brain and your chest thus, triggering you to hiccup.
Hiccups or known in medical terms as synchronous diaphragmatic flutter (SDF) or singultus, can happen for no apparent reason.
When it occurs, the usual remedy is for you to wait until it resolves on its own. Doctors don’t have specific diagnoses or treatments for hiccups unless underlying health conditions cause them.
Below are some of the tips you can follow to stop your hiccups:
- Sip ice-cold water slowly or gargle it.
- Breathe in and hold it for about 10 seconds, then breathe out slowly. Do it three or four times. Then do this again within 20 minutes later.
- When swallowing, place gentle pressure on each side of your nose. You can also do this on your diaphragm.
- Bite on lemon or sip in a small amount of vinegar.
- Melt sugar granules in your tongue then, swallow it.
- Breathe into a paper bag, but do not cover your head or suffocate yourself.
- Sit down and bring your knees to your chest, hug it for about 2 minutes.
- You can try to lean forward to gently press your chest.
- Try to drink warm water slowly without breathing.
Other treatments may include acupuncture, hypnosis, or triggering a gag reflex. Unfortunately, there is only a little research about how effective these remedies are.
They may or may not work for you. You can always try to calm down and wait for the hiccups to go away. However, if it persists and you experience nonstop hiccupping for a long time, consult your doctor immediately.
Why do I burp?
Although most people find it disturbing, you must know that it is normal when you burp. This happens to you because it helps your body release the extra air from the food you eat or drink.
When you eat something, the food goes down into your stomach through your esophagus. Sometimes you also swallow air along with it thus, making you feel full or bloated. This unpleasant feeling relieves when the air is released when you burp.
If burping becomes frequent and interferes with your normal daily activities, it could be that you have underlying health conditions. You should see a doctor and tell him about your symptoms.
The reasons of excessive burping
1. Acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
This could be one reason for your excessive burping. Acid reflux happens when the acid in your stomach moves into your esophagus and causes you to feel a burning sensation in your chest up to your neck.
You may also sense a bitter and/or sour taste at the back of your mouth and feel like the food or liquid flows back to your esophagus.
The common symptoms of GERD include the following:
- Intense heartburn
- Nausea and vomiting
- Trouble breathing and swallowing (feels like there’s a lump in your throat)
- Wet burps and/or hiccups
- Lingering cough or recurring asthma
If you suspect yourself to have acid reflux, you may want to change your diet and lifestyle, like cutting back on certain types of food such as chocolates, spicy foods, carbonated drinks, chewing gum, hard candies, etc.
Your doctor may also prescribe you a medicine that would help lessen your symptoms.
2. Inflammation of the stomach lining or gastritis
Although this type of disease doesn’t show any signs and symptoms, this often makes you feel bloated or gives you indigestion, nausea, and vomiting.
A certain bacteria known as H. pylori infects your stomach lining and causes inflammation. This bacteria also cause ulcers in other people.
3. Aerophagia and supragastric belching
You can get aerophagia when you swallow excess air into your stomach as you eat or talk quickly. The air may also move down to your intestines or colon. The common symptoms for this are frequent burping and/or belching several times a minute. You may also experience swelling or bloating of your stomach and abdominal pain.
Supragastric belching happens when an excess amount of air enters your esophagus and then rapidly moves out from your mouth which, causes you to produce a weird sound. Both of these diseases can make you experience excessive burping.
There’s only a little research about treating these conditions, and it may also be psychological.
You may undergo speech or behavioral therapies to help you prevent yourself from taking in excessive air into your stomach and/or esophagus.
Conclusion
Hiccups and burps are actually helpful to you. It is an important mechanism of your body in releasing the extra amount of air that enters your system. When the air isn’t released, it may go down to the bottom of your digestive tract and cause you pain.
Your hiccups and burps should go away in less than an hour. However, if you find yourself experiencing them frequently, you should see your doctor.
They will investigate if any underlying health condition is causing you to have them. Then, your doctor will give you treatments and suggest procedures you can follow to reduce your hiccup burps.
