What to say other than bless you?
The most common alternative response that I’m aware of, especially in American English, is “Gesundheit!”. Gesundheit! is borrowed from German, and literally means “Health!”. Actually “Bless you!” (often uttered as “bleshoo”) can be considered as the secular (or neutral) version of “God bless you!”.
Why do we say Gesundheit?
Gesundheit was borrowed from German, where it literally means “health”; it was formed by a combination of gesund (“healthy”) and -heit (“-hood”). Wishing a person good health when they sneezed was traditionally believed to forestall the illness that a sneeze often portends.
Is saying bless you after a sneeze universal?
Responding to sneezes is a strikingly international, nearly universal custom of calling in extra spiritual defenses for a sneezer. Gregory originated the custom of saying “God bless you” during a plague in which sneezing was a sign of fatal infection.
What to say to stop a sneeze?
6. Say ‘pickles’ Some people believe that saying an odd word right as you feel you’re about to sneeze distracts you from sneezing. Evidence for this tip is entirely anecdotal, but just as you’re gearing up to sneeze, say something like “pickles.”
What do you say when you sneeze in public?
After someone sneezes, saying “bless you” or “God bless you” is an instant reflex.
Where did God bless you after a sneeze originate?
One of the symptoms of the plague was coughing and sneezing, and it is believed that Pope Gregory I (Gregory the Great) suggested saying “God bless you” after a person sneezed in hopes that this prayer would protect them from an otherwise certain death. The expression may have also originated from superstition.
Why do we sneeze three times?
So, the first sneeze likely breaks up the irritant, while the second brings it into the nose, and the third shoots it out. So there you have it: our multi-sneezing is basically a three-step process to make sure you expel the potentially dangerous irritants that are trapped in your throat or the back of your nose.
What do Japanese say when someone sneezes?
He said in Japan they say hak-shun when they sneeze. In English we say a-choo. After Japanese people sneeze, no one says anything special. In English we say God bless you or Gesundheit.
Does your heart stop beating when you sneeze?
When you sneeze, the intrathoracic pressure in your body momentarily increases. This will decrease the blood flow back to the heart. The heart compensates for this by changing its regular heart beat momentarily to adjust. However, the electrical activity of the heart does not stop during the sneeze.
Is it bad to hold in sneezes?
Experts say, while rare, it’s possible to damage blood vessels in your eyes, nose, or eardrums when holding in a sneeze. The increased pressure caused by the sneeze being held in can cause blood vessels in the nasal passages to squeeze and burst.