Choose your language

Tip from the doc

Hatschi! The photic sneeze reflex

Do you know this? You step into the sunlight and - whoops - you have to sneeze. This phenomenon is called the photic sneeze reflex. Around a third of all people have this reflex.

Medically, this is a completely unproblematic story, and it is not a disease. The only thing you can't do with it is become a fighter pilot. The vast majority of people will be able to live with this restriction.

However, some people who don't know about the reflex sometimes find it silly or believe that the person who sneezes whenever they look at the sun is just fooling around. But it's really not the person's fault. The problem is genetic. We don't know exactly what the cause is or what exactly happens. It is likely that some nerve pathways are triggered that trigger the sneezing.

So the important thing here is that the photic sneeze reflex really does exist. However, it is not a clinical picture, but simply an interesting everyday medical phenomenon.

to the tip overview

Further interesting tips

Constraints

Where does compulsive behaviour begin - what are normal rituals? Doc spoke about this with Frank Köhnlein, a specialist in child and adolescent psychiatry and psychotherapy. Here are the most important points from the conversation.

Nosebleed

A constant issue with children is a bloody nose. And when the blood is flowing in streams, it's easy to lose your cool. But don't panic. Nosebleeds are actually quite harmless. And with our tips, it's quickly under control.

Moles

Children are not small adults. One topic where this beautiful phrase once again applies is the mole, medically known as a nevus. Dealing with brown moles and the need to have them looked at by a dermatologist is very different for children than for adults.