Why People Say, 'God Bless You' When You Sneeze

I've been sneezing for days now and all I get is, 'bless you'; 'bless you'. So, I decided to google why people make that statement and here is what I gathered:

A sneeze begins with a tickling sensation in the nerve endings that sends a message to your brain that it needs to rid itself of something irritating the lining of your nose. You first take a deep breath and hold it, which tightens your chest muscles.  The pressure of air in your lungs increases, you close your eyes, your tongue presses against the roof of your mouth and suddenly your breath comes out fast through your nose.

So where did the myth originate that your heart stops when you sneeze?

The changing pressure in your chest due to sneezing also changes your blood flow, which may change the rhythm of your heartbeat. Dr. Richard Conti, past president of the American College of Cardiology, speculates that the belief that the heart actually comes to a stop during a sneeze could result from the sensation of having the heart "skip a beat." When there is a prolonged delay before the heart's next beat, he said, that beat is then more forceful and more noticeable, perhaps as a funny sensation in the throat or upper chest (Ray, 1992).

WHY DO PEOPLE SAY, "GOD BLESS YOU," AFTER SOMEONE SNEEZES?

There are varying accounts as to the origin of this response.  One belief is that it originated in Rome when the bubonic plague was raging through Europe.  One of the symptoms of the plague was coughing and sneezing, and it is believed that Pope Gregory VII 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.  Some people believe that the custom of asking for God's blessing began when ancient man thought that the soul was in the form of air and resided in the body's head.  A sneeze, therefore, might accidentally expel the spirit from the body unless God blessed you and prevented this from occurring.  Some ancient cultures also thought that sneezing forced evil spirits out of the body endangering others because these spirits might now enter their bodies.  The blessing was bestowed to protect both the person sneezed and others around him.

Sneeze responses from around the world:

English – "Bless you" or "God bless you"
German – "Gesundheit"
Greeks and Romans – "Banish the Omen"
Hindu – "Live" and responds "With you"
Zulu – "I am now blessed"

Interesting facts:

Sneezes are an automatic reflex that can't be stopped once sneezing starts.
Sneezes can travel at a speed of 100 miles per hour and the wet spray can radiate five feet.
People don't sneeze when they are asleep because the nerves involved in nerve reflex are also resting.
Between 18 and 35% of the population sneezes when exposed to sudden bright light.
Some people sneeze when plucking their eyebrows because the nerve endings in the face are irritated and then fire an impulse that reaches the nasal nerve.

The custom of saying "God bless you" after a sneeze was begun literally as a blessing. Pope Gregory the Great (540-604 AD) ascended to the Papacy just in time for the start of the plague (his successor succumbed to it). Gregory (who also invented the ever-popular Gregorian chant) called for litanies, processions and unceasing prayer for God's help and intercession. Columns marched through the streets chanting, "Kyrie Eleison" (Greek for "Lord have mercy"). When someone sneezed, they were immediately blessed ("God bless you!") in the hope that they would not subsequently develop the plague. All that prayer apparently worked, judging by how quickly the plague of 590 AD diminished.

The connection of sneezing to the plague is not the first association of sneezing with death. According to Man, Myth, and Magic: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Mythology, Religion and the Unknown, many cultures, even some in Europe, believe that sneezing expels the soul--the "breath of life"--from the body. That doesn't seem too far-fetched when you realize that sneezing can send tiny particles speeding out of your nose at up to 100 miles per hour!

We know today, of course, that when you sneeze, your heart doesn't stop, nor will your eyes pop out if you can keep them open (www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_30 4.html), nor does your soul get expelled. What does get expelled are hundreds upon thousands of microscopic germs. The current advice when you sneeze is to cover your mouth with your arm rather than your hand. That way, all those germs won't be on your hands when you touch the countless things you're going to touch in the course of the day (don't tell us; we don't want to know).

There are many superstitions regarding sneezing; here are some of them:

Sneeze on Monday for health,
Sneeze on Tuesday for wealth,
Sneeze on Wednesday for a letter,
Sneeze on Thursday for something better,
Sneeze on Friday for sorrow,
Sneeze on Saturday, see your sweetheart tomorrow,
Sneeze on Sunday, safety seek.

One for sorrow
Two for joy
Three for a letter
Four for a boy.
Five for silver
Six for gold
Seven for a secret, never to be told.

And lastly, a sneeze before breakfast is a sign that you will hear exciting news before the end of the day.

Lol! Do you agree?


Source:
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read...