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Why can't I hear when I yawn?

yawn.jpgQuestion

Why is it that when we yawn, we can’t hear anything? How does it affect my hearing?
Saed, Kingsbury

Answer

** Definitive **
Name: Richard, Heathrow
Qualification: Ex-military pilot and I learnt it on a medical course for it
Answer: You have a tube, called the eustachian tube, which links the back of the throat to the middle ear. This is what neutralises the air pressure when you go up in a plane. When you yawn, you force air up this tube and it bends the ear-drum, and impairs the hearing until it equalises again.

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