A Great Mystery----------"-Why do we yawn???"

Yawning is the effect of not enough oxygen in our body (especially not enough in the brain). Our friends are yawning too couse they have the same problem as us (they are in the same place with not so much oxygen around, right?). ... and stars twinkle becouse of the air movement in the atmosphere, hehe.

symptoms that were sleepy or just bored..

Well, when I was younger I was told that our body is needing more air. Like you said that we usually yawn when we are bored or tired. So, it makes sense to me that we are not breathing as deeply as we do when we are not bored or tired. It is our bodies way of getting a deeper breath!

usually people are under the misconception that they are tired and hence they yawm this is not the reason for people yawning the major reason is that there is not enough oxygen that is there in the body meaning the amount of carbon-di-oxide that is in the body is more than amount of oxygen in this case there is not enough oxygen that is flowing through the blood into the brain which is why a person tends to feel tired and exhausted also yawning is said to be contageous when a person yawns, all the people close by to him also tend to yawn this is mainly because , when a person yawns, he lets out all the carbon-di-oxide from his body through his mouth in this case the air that he releases spreads over to other people near him and hence thay all also tend to yawn this yawning can mainly be stopped by having a rich source of oxygen such as water some people clap their fingers to remove a yawn but that does not happen so the best remedy would be to drink some water

Someone told me once that it has something to do with oxygen and the brain?

It has only just occurred to me that even though we have all of these scientific theories on the purpose of yawning flying around, nobody has yet been able to answer why we make such stupid faces when we yawn, or why some people's nostrils flare. That's one of the things I want to know. Sure, deep inhalation and slow exhalation of oxygen, but do we really have to look like twits while we do it? I also wonder how stretching fits into the equation, because I love a good stretch when I yawn.

well i dont know actually on this..but for my opinion or interpretations..i yawned when i felt bored and feeling sleepy..since it always happens when i felt it..

I had this teacher in Biology when I was in 2nd year that doesn't like to see her students yawn in her class. STRICTLY NO YAWNING. She said we if we feel like we have to yawn, we should take a deep breath till the yawn goes away. She also said that yawning means that we lack oxygen in our brain and it doesn't necessarily mean that we feel bored or sleepy. We feel sleepy or tired because we lack oxygen in our brain. Or so she says. But I believe her cos sometimes I just yawn even though I don't feel bored or anything like that. :)

I read in a medical journal that yawning stems from not getting enough oxygen into the brain...makes sense..I don't ever remember yawning when I'm walking, running or engaged in any outdoor activity...breathing in fresh air feeds the brain with necessary oxygen..however :) I would think that if it were the spirit trying to get out of the body :) would that be the same thing as being...possessed...LOL..

We yawn when there is insufficient oxygen in the immediate air around us..thats why it is so infectious

I've been told that we yarn because there is a lack of oxygen in the blood stream and the brain causes us to yawn to draw in more oxygen and replenish what's not there.

I would love to know the answer to this, however I am unable to actually read the discussion thoroughly because I've yawned about 15 times already, and the more I talk about yawning, the more I yawn. I don't even know why, I'm not tired - it must be the effect you guys have on me. Somebody once told me that the reason we yawn when we see other people yawning is because the brain believes that due to their large intake of oxygen, we will be depleted of oxygen, and thus your body tries to combat this deficiency by forcing you to yawn. I'm not sure how true it is, the last I knew she wasn't a biologist but just a regular 17 year old, however it seems plausible somewhat. I might go sleep now, lol...

Well, they say that it is because you're lacking oxygen and when you yawn you take in a big amount of oxygen. Also, sometimes when you yawn you are tired and the extra oxygen you take in is brought to brain as an attempt to keep you awake. When you yawn it is said that your heart rate increases, but not so much that it's bad. When someones is breathing they are not just taking in oxygen, they are taking in all these other gases such as nitrogen and so if you notice when you are bored or tired you are taking smaller breaths then you would normally which causes low levels of oxygen in your body and blood which causes you to yawn. Now, when you see other people yawn or even think about yawning, as I am yawning right now, is a mystery. It is still unknown to scientists and all those other people who think they know, but really don't

I am just noticing this now. Many people have responded saying that see people yawn makes you yawn b/c you are in the same area, that is not true. Because when you just think about yawning it makes you yawn. Go Ahead and try it, I bet you are yawning right now. Also, there is a way to stop a yawn before it happens, I do this all the time. If you ever need to not yawn because of the noise or it would just seem rude or for any reason, there are two ways: do an inside yawn, meaning try your hardest to keep your mouth shut and breath through your nose, and the other way is when you feel the yawn coming on take deep breaths: in through your nose, out through your mouth. I always use the deep breaths.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yawning and http://www.howstuffworks.com/question572.htm

I heard that from scientific thinking, people yawning because they are not enough oxygen. But traditionally, is because we feel sleepy, the really reason I'm not sure. But when feel want to yawn then just do it, but be manner if in front of a lot people.

I will usually yawn when I am getting sleepy or tired.

i think its not a mystery. scientific studies (well, as i have read to some books) that yawning is a reaction that your body needs oxygen. we consume lots of oxygen everyday that we really need to rest to back up again. notice that we yawn when we're sleepy? thats because we're too tired that we need to rest for another oxygen to crop.. ~ thats how i've read to some kids book. science books. and even encyclopedia.. hope it helps.. ~ciao!

wow!! great topic!! well,I think we yawn because of two reasons- first-when we have less blood supply to our brain(in short we lose interest from something subsequently)or brain feels sleepy.. second-when we yawn looking others yawn...now this is psychologicaly being influenced by others,and feel bored!! but trust me,quite a good topic to think ;-)

Yawning isn't caused by boredom or our spirit leaving our body. It is simply because of lacking the essential oxygen that our body needs. If you could notice when we yawn, we open our mouth so wide as if it signals our body to breathe as much oxygen as it could possibly do. And the reason why people tend to yawn when seeing other people yawning is because they are in the same place where oxygen supply is so low that it cannot supply enough oxygen to one's body system. Hope I was able to answer your inquiry. Thank you for letting me respond here.