• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
Doctor reveals the one sound people make that means they have under 24 hours left to live

Home> News> Health

Updated 16:17 4 Jun 2025 GMT+1Published 16:12 4 Jun 2025 GMT+1

Doctor reveals the one sound people make that means they have under 24 hours left to live

There's apparently a way to know if someone is nearing the end of their life

Niamh Shackleton

Niamh Shackleton

A doctor has explained why people can make a certain noise when they're just hours away from death.

There's a particular noise our bodies will make if we're just 24 hours away from dying, and that's something known as a 'death rattle'.

According to Healthline, this is 'a crackling, wet sound that may accompany each breath'.

The site continues: "A death rattle is a distinctive sound that a person may make as they are coming to the end of their life and may no longer be able to swallow or cough effectively enough to clear their saliva."

Advert

This may happen as person drifts in and out of consciousness and their breathing becomes more labored.

Someone nearing the end of their life may develop a 'death rattle' (Getty Stock Image)
Someone nearing the end of their life may develop a 'death rattle' (Getty Stock Image)

Why does this happen?

Going into more detail as to why this occurs, former medical student, PhD candidate, and nuclear medicine resident Dr Paulien Moyaert said in a YouTube video: "This occurs because as consciousness decreases, patients lose their ability to swallow. Air moves these pooled secretions resulting in noising breathing."

Advert

She added: "Some people say that the death rattle is the lungs' attempt to breathe through a layer of saliva."

While it looks quite distressing, apparently because the person making the noise is likely unconscious it means they won't be in any pain.

Can you treat a death rattle?

"We often give drugs to try dry up the airways and soften the death rattle," said Dr Moyaert. "But when we do it, it's not for the dying person but for their family."

Advert

The health expert further noted: "Repositioning the patient so that they're turned to their side with their head slightly elevated may also help."

Many viewers of the doctor's video have thanked her for the explanation. One person said: "Thank you. I am alone with my dying mother right now and this helped me know that it is normal."

A second wrote: "My friend is dying in Florida and her daughter is keeping me updated. She referenced a 'death rattle' in one of her updates and I wasn't sure what that was. Thank you for explaining it."

Advert

A third added: "Amazing, my father sounded just like this sample. Thank you Dr."

Others said they wished they knew this information before their own loved ones died.

"Thank you for helping inform and educate people who are experiencing this with a loved one or who will eventually do so," someone else commented. "I wish I had this information before my mom died. It was traumatic to hear as she had a very pronounced death rattle and it sounded like she was struggling to breath. the sound haunted me for months after she passed."

If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence, contact GrieveWell on (734) 975-0238, or email [email protected].

Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/RapidEye

Topics: Health, News

Niamh Shackleton
Niamh Shackleton

Niamh Shackleton is an experienced journalist for UNILAD, specialising in topics including mental health and showbiz, as well as anything Henry Cavill and cat related. She has previously worked for OK! Magazine, Caters and Kennedy.

X

@niamhshackleton

Advert

Advert

Advert

  • End-of-life doctor reveals what people see before they die
  • Parents of conjoined twins who were given less than 24 hours to live explain why they won’t separate them
  • Doctor reveals the surprising truth behind the biggest myths surrounding vasectomies in men
  • Doctor reveals the one animal sound that can actually help when you're on the toilet

Choose your content:

26 mins ago
11 hours ago
12 hours ago
13 hours ago
  • 26 mins ago

    Bill Cosby breaks silence after The Cosby Show star Malcolm-Jamal Warner dies suddenly aged 54

    The actor drowned off the coast of Costa Rica on Sunday, according to local police

    Celebrity
  • 11 hours ago

    Homeless man shocked to learn he won $1,000,000 lottery reveals what he's going to buy first

    Armando Vidal was told by a store manager he'd won a life-changing sum

    News
  • 12 hours ago

    Campaign to embarrass Donald Trump on his trip to UK quickly gains support and raises thousands

    Donald Trump is set to visit the UK this week before a state visit in September

    News
  • 13 hours ago

    People convinced they’ve found ‘glitch in the Matrix’ as shrinking mill footage goes viral

    The 'shrinking mill' has even become a tourist attraction in the Canadian province

    News