Snowmen, snowballs, snow angels, snow forts — we do a lot with the fluffy flakes.
And you’ve likely passed childhood moments catching snowflakes on your tongue. But the practice of snow as a culinary ingredient — snow cones, hot cocoa, ice cream — had simmered for years, until recently, when a few celebrities began posting their frosty fancies on social media.
But snow isn’t simply frozen water. As snow crystallizes, it picks up atoms of dust or pollen — and as it descends to the ground, it draws in minute chemical contaminants.
So snow is an element with plenty of fun wintery applications, but you’re probably asking yourself, Can you eat snow?
“It’s situation dependent,” explains certified physician assistant, Max Huddleston, PA-C.
Before you begin scooping snow for dinner or dessert, Huddleston gives us a few pointers for how to safely enjoy eating snow.
When NOT to eat snow
Huddleston says yeah, there are some times and situations where you NEVER want to eat snow. These include:
If it’s been disturbed. That includes shoveled, plowed or walked-on snow. “Cars could drip oil or gas onto the snow,” says Huddleston.
If it’s discolored (yellow or black snow, for instance) It might seem like common sense not to eat yellow or black snow, but it’s worth repeating. “The immediate association is, oh, urine,” resulting in the “just awful” scenarios, says Huddleston. “But you don’t know what a guy can dump onto the snow to turn it to brown.” Rule of thumb: Always eat the purest of white snow.
First layer of snow or the first few hours of the snow falling. When those first flakes hit the ground they blend with all sorts of stuff your earth already has such as salt and fertilizer. And as snow falls, it also helps purify the air. “The first snow that falls in the first few hours has more pollutants than snow that falls a couple of hours later,” explains Huddleston.
Consider where you live
Before you go chow down on some snow, Huddleston says you should also take into account where you live when determining if snow is safe.
If you reside in a larger city like New York or Chicago, the volume of pollution is compounded by the number of cars, trucks, buses, buildings and factories. But in more rural areas, air tends to be cleaner.
“Because the amount of pollution a city emits, it’s just so much greater than a smaller city,” says Huddleston.
Now, that doesn’t mean those city dwellers can never eat snow. You just have to pay attention and be mindful where your snow come from.”
Eating snow does not dehydrate you?
You might answer in the negative. Snow is frozen water crystals so it should be hydrating, no? But not so fast, Huddleston says.
“You need energy to melt that snow in a drinkable form. You’re spending more energy to melt that snow because the heat comes from your own body,” he explains. “Any hydration you’re getting from eating or drinking snow is not as good as the energy you’re expending to melt it. So, over time, if you’re eating a high volume of snow, theoretically, that can dehydrate you.”
The other question is whether eating snow can give you hypothermia. If you’re out playing in the backyard and catch a few flakes on your tongue, you’ll be OK. But hypothermia can factor in if you’re relying on snow as a source of hydration.
“Imagine somebody who’s in survival mode out in the wilderness or doesn’t have any other option, you’re already out in the cold,” says Huddleston. “Eating lots of snow can lower your core temperature.”
Let it snow
So, is it safe to eat snow? In small quantities, snow can be safe to eat and a fun wintertime memory. Just make sure you survey the area and that the snow is:
Undisturbed.
Pristine white.
The top layer of snow.
And when in doubt, don’t eat snow from that region.” But as for Huddleston, if there’s snow in his back yard that meets all those criteria above, he’ll be indulging in the frozen treat.
“When my kid wants snow to eat, I always go back to when I was a kid, I ate snow,” he relates. “I’ll eat snow with them and just love it.”
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