BuzzFeed readers share 19 unusual things their bodies do that they didn't know were not normal, including hiccupping when a specific area on the chin is pressed, having an allergy to stone fruit, experiencing coughing and gagging when something is put in the ear, sneezing in bright light, having a retroverted uterus, getting hot knees, experiencing sharp shooting pains down the limbs, having a paradoxical response to medications, experiencing synesthesia with color associations, itching ear canals during pressure changes, feeling physical pain when witnessing others being hurt, vomiting when laughing too hard, being able to control dreams, absence of arm and leg hair due to a genetic blood condition, being able to focus and unfocus eyes on command, sneezing when cold, having an unusually long large intestine, being able to rumble ears on command, and not having an internal monologue.
A new study analyzing thousands of sets of twins suggests a genetic link between synesthesia and autism. The research found that synesthesia, a phenomenon where sensory stimuli trigger additional sensory effects, shares genetic roots with non-social autism traits, such as repetitive and restricted behaviors and interests. The study also revealed that synesthesia seems to run in families, particularly specific types of synesthesia. While genes play a role in synesthesia, environmental factors also contribute significantly. The researchers hope that these findings will inspire further research on the shared genetic mechanisms of autism and synesthesia, as well as the specific behavioral features shared between the two phenomena.
Reddit users shared 21 uncommon things their bodies do that they thought were normal until someone pointed out otherwise. These include tasting words, having a double uvula, experiencing cataplexy, thinking bananas were sour and grapes were carbonated due to intolerance, having dermatographia, discovering asthma, having unique blood vessels, feeling ears attempt to move towards sounds, having eight wisdom teeth, realizing vision defect, having two uteruses, experiencing hyperactivity, having a stuffy nose affecting sense of smell, having exceptional lung capacity, hearing spinal fluid movement, growing a third set of teeth, having perfect pitch, having a third nipple, being very buoyant, having alternating exo vision, and having aphantasia.
Synesthesia is a condition where one sense triggers an additional response in another sense. It is more prevalent among creative people, including musicians and artists. Even non-synesthetes tend to pair unrelated sights and sounds, such as loud sounds with larger objects and high-pitched sounds with brighter colors. The brain binds two different yet corresponding sensory attributes, giving us an insight into how what we perceive by one sense can influence others. Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann accidentally discovered LSD, which transformed him into a kind of narcotic-baked synesthete.
