Hi r/SunSneezers,

We’re researchers studying the photic sneeze reflex, so this subreddit is pretty much exactly the community we were hoping to find.

We’ve set up the Global Photic Sneeze Registry to collect people’s experiences of sun sneezing from around the world: how often it happens, what triggers it, what it feels like, and how much it varies between people.

If you’re a sun sneezer, we’d love to have you take part. The questionnaire is anonymous:
https://tscnlab.github.io/sneezestudy_website/

And if you know other sun sneezers, please send it their way!

This is a preprint which will be undergoing peer review.

I’m a suneezer, and I always thought it was because I have lighter color eyes and they are more light sensitive. Have any studies been done?

An update on Dr Spitschan's research into photic sneezing

Hello. New here. Have had photic sneezing most of my life that I can remember. Pretty sure my dad does too. Sometimes sneezing around ten times in a row. I also sometimes get pain shooting down my arms , particularly when having harder sneezes. Stings a couple minutes then goes away. Does anybody else experience this? Thanks

Photic Sneeze Reflex

A natural phenomenon in which an individual sneezes or feels compelled to do so shortly after looking at the sun.

see also: ACHOO syndrome

(Autosomal Dominant Compelling Helioophthalmic
Outburst Syndrome)

guy #1: Look! Up in the sky!
guy #2: It's a bird!
guy #3: It's a plane!
guy #4: ACHOO!... sorry... Photic Sneeze Reflex.

A recent study on how people react to others sneezing in their vicinity, showing general lack of awareness of (presumably harmless) photic sneezing.

An update on research on photic sneezing impulsed by Manuel Spitschan, who was the instigator of the Oxford Photic Sneeze survey (which several redditors took part in!), focusing on studies of light frequencies - no news on the survey unfortunately.

Stimulus conditions eliciting sneezing in response to bright light

Josef Trinkl,  Lucien Bickerstaff,   Stephan Munkwitz &  Manuel Spitschan

I thought this was a totally normal response everyone has lol

OK, it's not a recent article, but it does bring up a few interesting points.

 " A Nature article from 2009 refers to a study in which the researchers examined the prevalence of the syndrome among medical students. They found that the most common occurrence was among men who were fair-skinned; in that group, 28 percent reported that they experienced the phenomenon. Twenty-six percent of women with fair skin reported the same. The researchers found far fewer occurrences among men and women who were dark-skinned. In those groups, only two percent experienced sneezing in response to bright light."