Comments on: I’m Photic, How Are You?

By: Aaron

Aaron — Mon, 03 May 2010 04:43:34 +0000

I have sneezed due to bright light ever since I can remember, but I never knew that this occurrence was rare. Then again, I can’t recall ever speaking about it to anyone. I feel strangely special now.

By: Anton Sherwood

Anton Sherwood — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 03:07:26 +0000

Marc: You mean your pee normally smells of asparagus, or asparagus changes its smell?

Under pressure from mother, I recently ate a small amount of asparagus, for the first time in many years; and, remembering that asparagus pee odor is mentioned in Gateway (or possibly BtBEH, I made a mental note to pay attention … Maybe I didn’t eat enough.

By: jimf

jimf — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 21:37:16 +0000

I sneeze when I walk out of a building into the sun and have done so for years. Bright lights which are not the sun do not have that effect.

By: DB

DB — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:08:48 +0000

I was hoping this would be “phonetic” sneezing, the tendency of some people to say words while sneezing. My father sneezes the word “horses–t”. He claims not to be doing this deliberately.

By: Omphalos

Omphalos — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 00:48:10 +0000

Whenever I get the urge to sneeze but cannot, I look at a bright light and the sneeze usually comes. Ive been like that for as long as I can remember. For a while there I was telling friends about it whenever they had sneezes that wouldn’t come. It worked for very few of them.

By: Marc

Marc — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:48:43 +0000

Out of ancestral and medical curiosity I had my DNA profiled by 23andme last year. Interestingly they run a series of post analysis surveys and tests which you can complete online. One of the more lightheaded surveys is called “10 things about me” of which photic tendency (something I’d never heard of before) is one. According to 23andme’s stats, the likelihood of a photic response is running at 30%-32%. My favourite question of the 10 was “asparagus odour when you pee” (something I was aware of) which apparently 54% of the population experience.

On a more serious note, 23andme are currently investigating the possible genetic link of photic sneeze response. Aka: autosomal dominant compelling helio-ophthalmic outburst syndrome (ACHOO syndrome). However there’s no indication yet as to when that research is due to complete.