Answer 1:
This is a great question about natural
processes -- it's very good to stay curious and
ask the "why" questions! One of the reasons we
sneeze is to get rid of an excess of unwelcome
foreign particles or irritants. In other words,
the mucus lining of our noses usually traps
these particles and deals with them but when too
many have built up or come in at once, we expel
them by sneezing. Particles or irritants
entering our noses trigger the release of
chemicals called histamines. The histamines in
turn trigger a response in the nerve cells of
the nose, and these nerve cells send a signal
indicating that a sneeze is necessary! In
addition to removing unwanted particles, a
recent study suggested that sneezing may also
serve to "reset" the environment in the nose so
that foreign particles can be trapped normally
again.
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Answer 2:
To answer your question, sneezing is a very
useful action our bodies have developed to
prevent unwanted particles in the air from
entering the body. As you are certainly aware,
we have openings in our bodies (mouth, nose,
ears) that allow us to bring things from the
environment that we need to survive into our
bodies (like food and air!). However, there are
many things in the environment that we do not
want to get into our bodies, like germs and
dirt. Sneezing is just a reflex our bodies have
developed to prevent these unwanted things from
getting inside of us and making us sick. When
unwanted particles travel into your nose, they
irritate the cells inside the nostril. This
sends a message in your brain to expel the
particle (along with mucus and anything else
that might be up there). The sneeze itself is a
strong contraction of muscles in your throat and
face that abruptly forces out the contents of
your nose. Did you know: humans aren’t the only
organisms that sneeze, all mammals do!
Gesundheit!
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