Is it bad to eat your boogers?

Question

Eek! Somebody I know does!

Answer 1

:p gross... I dont think it would be bad for you but that is still nasty. read this


You Can Pick Your Doctor, and You Can Pick Your Nose

In the scientific and medical communities, the technical name for using one's finger to extract boogers is rhinotillexis, and doing so compulsively is termed rhinotillexomania. The act of eating the resulting harvest is called mucophagy.<---(eew!)

There is an Austrian doctor who has gained notoriety by advocating the picking of one's nose and the consumption of the resulting bounty, particularly in children. Dr. Friedrich Bischinger, a lung specialist working in Innsbruck, would have us believe that people who pick their noses with their fingers are healthier, happier, and more in tune with their bodies. His argument stems from the notion that exposing the body to the dried germ remains helps to reinforce the immune system. The good doctor feels that society should adopt a new approach to nose-picking, and encourage children to take up the habit.

Dr. Bischinger has been quoted as saying (in an Austrian accent), "With the finger you can get to places you just can't reach with a handkerchief, keeping your nose far cleaner. And eating the dry remains of what you pull out is a great way of strengthening the body's immune system." He then added, "Medically it makes great sense and is a perfectly natural thing to do. In terms of the immune system the nose is a filter in which a great deal of bacteria are collected, and when this mixture arrives in the intestines it works just like a medicine."

"Modern medicine is constantly trying to do the same thing through far more complicated methods, people who pick their nose and eat it get a natural boost to their immune system for free."

This theoretical boost comes from the fact that boogers are chock full of bacteria which your body has shuttled out by way of mucus. Mucus lines many of the pathways into the body's delicate innards, and creates a surface which is like flypaper for bacteria and other particles. Once stuff becomes mired in the goo, the loaded mucus is slowly escorted out by tiny hairs called cilia which sweep the undesirables back out the door. In regards to the nose, when this exiting mucus becomes dry, boogers are produced.

What our good Dr. Bischinger doesn't tell us is that nose mining can be a dangerous pursuit. If the skin inside the nose is broken while picking away, the veins in that region are situated in such a way that sometimes an infection can migrate inward to the base of the brain and inhibit the blood flow, a serious condition known as cavernous sinus thrombosis. This condition can also be caused by squeezing zits on or around the nose. Because of these risks, the triangular area of the face from the corners of the mouth to the bridge of the nose is referred to in the medical community as the "danger triangle of the face."

Risks aside, can the immune system really be reinforced by introducing germs into the gut via boogers? While the unpleasant notion may have some scientific merit, it is not based on any formal studies. For this reason, I propose a clinical study where each test subject is given real boogers or placebo boogers for a period of months, and each group's susceptibility to disease is cataloged during that time. Only then can we know with any certainty.

Incidentally, eating boogers is technically a form of Pica, a disorder where one has a compulsive appetite for non-foods.

Answer 2

Are Boogers Bad To Eat

Answer 3

I don't think its "bad" but I'm not sure if its a good thing to do. Isn't there bacteria in boogers and stuff like dust and such that your body is trying to filter out? Why put it back in? Would you put poop back into your body? You know what I mean? Ha ha ha

Answer 4

i dont think it would be much worse than bitting your nails but it is still a gross habbit. Your boogers would actually be cleaner since they dont touch nearly as much as your hands do but i guess when the boogers would touch your fingers it would be two disgusting habbits in 1. It is still pretty sick though!!!

Answer 5

No But ther great in just a tad of fondu sauce,maybe with some tabasco.Or just throw them on the barb-b que.

Answer 6

naw, it's bad to eat somebody else's boogers

Answer 7

The more 'bats you eat from the cave', the healthier you'll get, at leats it won't look like you've been eating asparagus with the stuff stuck on your teeth.

Answer 8

lol actually i seen on the news that it can be healthy for your imune system to eat your own boogers...i wouldnt do it LOL but it deffinatly wont hurt anyone.

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Answer 9

Easier with salt, pepper and a little Catchup.

Answer 10

A handy suppliment of vitamins and minerals!