  A sneeze is a sudden, forceful, uncontrolled burst of air through the nose and mouth. When the sensitive tissues inside your nose are irritated, your nose tries to get rid of the irritation. A signal is sent to the muscles that help you breathe, and they suddenly contract. Air bursts from your lungs and carries away the irritating substance.Sneezing can be due to dry air, allergies, mold, dust, or you might have a cold or the flu. But a lot of other stuff gets expelled too, like water vapour, water droplets, and mucus from your nose. This moisture may be full of microorganisms, and some of those may be unhealthy ones. This cloud of air and moisture can move as fast as 160 kilometres per hour ... as fast as hurricane winds! So cover that sneeze! EDITOR'S NOTE: You don't want to know what ends up floating around in the air after someone has broken wind. Trust us! Or visit our page 'Unpleasant Facts' if you have a strong stomach. Some things you can do if you're sneezing a lot: change furnace filters, use air filters to reduce pollen in the air, or have a professional deal with a mold spore problem. |