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Mystery #1Tier 2the body / emotions

Why do salty tears spill out of your eyes when you feel sad?

Chop an onion and your eyes water. Get a speck of dust in them and they water too. But nobody chopped anything when you cry at a sad film, and there is no dust in sight. Somehow a feeling all on its own can make salty water pour from your eyes. How does a feeling turn into a tear?

A child’s face with tears rolling down both cheeks.
Photo: Reji Jacob · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Your guess

What do you think starts the tears when you feel sad?

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