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Want to cure your hiccups These 13 plastic sticks 'never fail'… apparentlyThe 'Hiccup Stick' works in the same was as traditional cure of drinking water upside down, 'but without the mess' The inventors are so confident they have offered buyers a 'money back guarantee'
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UPDATED:
13:32 GMT, 30 November 2012
Whether it is holding your breath, drinking a glass of water, or sucking a lemon, everyone has a hiccup cure.
But off the shelf remedies for the uncomfortable spasms are practically unheard of. Until now – apparently.
American inventors claim this 13 set of plastic sticks with holes in them have 'never failed to cure' hiccups.
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The Hiccup Stick works by recreating the traditional cure of drinking water upside down, without the mess
The Hiccup Stick works by 'recreating the traditional cure of drinking water upside down – without the mess', they say
Inventor Chuck Ray came up with the idea in frustration after suffering from bouts of hiccups throughout his life.
He got the hiccups while sitting in his office at home and grabbed a glass of water, drinking it with a pen in his mouth.
Inventor Chuck Ray came up with the idea in frustration after suffering from bouts of hiccups throughout his life and trying to cure them by drinking water through a pen
Bizarrely, it eased his symptoms.
OTHER SO -CALLED 'CURES'…
Eat a spoonful of peanut butter
Hold your breath
Breathe into a paper bag
Stand on your head and drink water
Drink water from the opposite side of a cup
Get someone to scare you
Drink a teaspoonful of vinegar
Swallow repeatedly
Stick your fingers in your ears
Stick out your tongue
Sniff smelling salts
Make yourself vomit
Mr Ray said: 'They didn’t stop immediately but it was enough to make me believe I was on to something.
'Here was a way that could have the potential to help others treat their hiccups.'
He spent months developing prototypes until he struck upon a working model that he says stopped hiccups every time.
It works by allowing water and air to flow – biting down on the stick causes the throat muscles to tense, stopping hiccups.
Users are advised that around half a cup of water is needed.
Mr Ray added: 'Soon I was getting calls back from people who were amazed at the results.
'In every single case it worked to stop hiccups, from kids as young as three to adults in their 80s.
'It even worked with several people with more serious chronic hiccups.'
Mr Ray patented the tool, set up his own company Hicural in Sacramento, California, and began manufacturing and selling the Hiccup Stick.
It comes with a money-back guarantee and 10,000 have sold from a number of websites.
They cost around 13 for a pack of three.
Mr Ray added: 'As far as we know, the Hiccup Stick has never failed to stop hiccups.'
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