A hiccup refers to the involuntary contraction of the diaphragm

These contractions may repeat for several times until it stops. Let us get into more details of why this happens

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The diaphragm is a dome-shaped muscle between the lungs and the stomach

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The function of the diaphragm is to pull air into the lungs when you inhale and push air out of the lungs when you exhale

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Sometimes, the contraction of the diaphragm goes out of rhythm. This is when hiccups occur

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When the diaphragm contracts irregularly, it makes people suck in the air more suddenly

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This also causes the vocal cords to close suddenly while the excess air was going in through the mouth

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This causes the vocal cords to produce a sound, which we call a hiccup

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