The sun can cause you to sneeze if you have this condition | Hey Ray
The sun does more than brighten up the sky. It is the cause of all of our weather, by driving the water cycle. The sun sometimes causes the body to react in weird ways, too. It brightens our moods. It also can cause you to sneeze!
You heard that right! The Sun can trigger sneezes! This is a phenomenon known as Photic Sneeze Reflex. Another name is Autosomal dominant Compelling Helio-Ophthalmic Outburst syndrome. Yep, that spells "ACHOO", and some call it "ACHOO Syndrome".
According to the Cleveland Clinic, theses sunny sneezes, or ACHOO syndrome, are caused by "crossed wires" involving your trigeminal nerve, a facial nerve that goes to your eye and nose. When a bright light hits your eyes, your pupils constrict causing a sneeze. They say this reflex usually happens on initial exposure to the sun or a very bright light.
If this is something that affects you, chances are someone else in your family has these sunny sneezes, too. When looking at the genetic reasoning for this syndrome, the National Library of Medicine says that is not known, but this is an inherited disorder. If one parent has ACHOO Syndrome, a child has a 50 percent chance of having it, too.
If you have ACHOO syndrome, it is probably good that you live in the Pittsburgh area, since we average only 59 clear days compared to 203 cloudy days every year, according to the National Center For Environmental Information.
So if you ever had a stuck sneeze, and someone told you to look at the sun or up to a bright light, they knew what they were talking about!
