G : A sneeze is a very interesting thing. We use
many different muscles when we sneeze. These
include stomach muscles, throat muscles, and
eye muscles. Remember, our eyes always close
during a sneeze.
A sneeze begins when something gets inside
your nose, like a tiny particle of dust. Your nose
sends a message to your brain. Your brain sends
messages to the muscles, getting them to work
together in the correct order. When you sneeze,
the dust that was in your nose flies out as fast as
100 miles an hour! Usually something like dust
or cold air makes us sneeze, but some people
sneeze whenever they look at the sun. Some people
think that your heart stops when you sneeze.
Actually, it really doesn’t, but sometimes it
might feel like it does.
After someone sneezes, people often say
“Bless you,” or “God bless you.” To bless
someone means to wish them good and special
things. Why do people say this? Long ago,
people believed that this saying kept bad things
from flying down your throat. Another story is
that people thought this saying would help keep
the person who sneezed from getting a very
serious disease called the plague. At that time,
the plague was killing thousands of people. It
was thought that saying “God bless you” would
protect people from getting this awful disease.
Today, the saying is simply a nice way to wish
someone well.