The Man Who Hiccupped for 68 Years Straight

On June 13, 1922, Iowa farmer Charles Osborne was doing what farmers do—preparing to slaughter a 350-pound hog. He picked up the animal, fell down, and when he got back up, he had the hiccups. Nothing unusual about that, except his hiccups never stopped.

For the next 68 years, Charles Osborne hiccupped between 20 and 40 times per minute, every minute, of every day. That's an estimated 430 million hiccups over nearly seven decades—a world record that still stands today.

What Caused It?

The fall that triggered Osborne's marathon hiccup session likely caused neurological damage. Dr. Terence Anthoney theorized that the accident destroyed a tiny area in Osborne's brain stem responsible for inhibiting the hiccup reflex. Modern neurosurgeon Ali Seifi offers an alternative explanation: the fall may have damaged Osborne's diaphragm through rib injury, causing the endless spasms.

Whatever the cause, no treatment could stop it. Osborne tried everything from home remedies to medical interventions, but the hiccups persisted relentlessly.

Living with the Hiccups

Remarkably, Osborne didn't let his condition completely derail his life. He married twice and fathered eight children. However, the hiccups made everyday activities challenging:

• He couldn't eat solid food and had to blend all his meals to avoid choking
• Sleep was nearly impossible with constant diaphragm spasms
• Normal conversation required talking between hiccups
• Dentures became impossible to keep in place

By 1982, when People magazine interviewed the then-88-year-old Osborne, he'd been hiccupping for 60 years. He told reporters he'd learned to suppress the sound somewhat, but the physical sensation never stopped.

The Mystery Ending

Then, one morning in February 1990—68 years after they started—the hiccups simply stopped. No treatment, no explanation. They just ended as mysteriously as they'd begun.

Charles Osborne died about a year later in May 1991 at age 97, finally getting to enjoy a few blissfully quiet months after nearly seven decades of nonstop hiccupping. His Guinness World Record for the longest attack of hiccups remains unbroken, and honestly, let's hope it stays that way.