# Educate a California boy: Why NOT eat snow? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 8, 2014, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826 "2014-02-08T12:52:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/41 "2014-02-10T02:47:56Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > If your air pollution is so bad that eating snow would be dangerous, then breathing that same air would be a lot more dangerous. Your digestive system is a lot better at dealing with bad gunk than your respiratory system is. Probably. It may be that someone allergic to tree pollen might imbibe pollen accidentally ? The pollen could be collected in the snow, while it remained thin in the air. But basically, it only applies to people allergic to pollen . Perhaps their lack of exposure is contributing to their allergy… ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/42 "2014-02-10T03:45:14Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > Snow looks nice and pure and clean and white. But… (of course) …I read somewhere…are there some kind of INSECTS that live and breed on top of that nice clean white snow? Here? In Antarctica? In the Arctic Circle? Various hypogastrura live in the in the duff but hop about on the snow when it is not too cold. They live in the nearctic, palearctic and (probably thanks to us) antarctic ecozones. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/43 "2014-02-10T03:59:02Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I don’t have a PhD in entropy but how is it different using body heat to melt snow outside your body versus inside your body? Cuz you can’t stop the heat from radiating from you. You might as well capture it in the snow and put it back in you, rather than put cold snow in you and let the body heat escape to the atmosphere. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/44 "2014-02-10T04:13:58Z")
As a kid I was told never to eat snow, but that never stopped me from eating it anyway. OTOH I’m from L.A., so my only encounters with snow were during winter day trips to the local mountains. Maybe with inner city snow, or other non-wilderness places, the rules are different? ---
**Author:** ![pompeybear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8c91f0/32.png) [@pompeybear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pompeybear)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/45 "2014-02-10T04:32:23Z")
> [@GusNSpot](#): > > Ever notice how clear the air is after a good rain? No, not really. I probably wouldn’t eat the snow near a smoke stack, but I don’t see anything particularly wrong with eating the snow out in a field. I wonder if some of this is a rural/urban thing. I ate snow as a kid when I lived out in the country (grandparents would add vanilla to it actually). When I lived in Boston, however, I remember the snow looked pretty gross after a while. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/46 "2014-02-10T04:41:34Z")
**looks up with a mouth and handful full of snow** Fwhat?! ---
**Author:** ![tonyfop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85f322/32.png) [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/47 "2014-02-10T04:48:36Z")
> [@FluffyBob](#): > > Yes I know that millions of precious fops now believe North American tap water is unclean and water must be consumed from a pure plastic disposable bottle, but other than an unpleasant chlorine taste (which will disappear if the water sits in the fridge for a couple hours) most North American tap water is perfectly safe. There is no way fresh fallen snow is somehow dirtier than water from a stream. There is at least three Fops that do not believe that. When a significant snowfall is predicted I leave a bowl out on the deck to collect it so that myself, Mrs. Fop, and Mini-Fop can enjoy fresh Snow Cream. ---
**Author:** ![tonyfop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85f322/32.png) [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/48 "2014-02-10T05:07:37Z")
Wow, bad English. There are at least three Fops. Edited from “There is at least one Fop”, changed everything but the verb. Time for bed. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/49 "2014-02-10T12:54:47Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Survivalists will sometimes place bags of snow close to their body to warm them to liquid before drinking - this allows them better control of their heat loss. If they are getting too cold, they can drop the snow. Can’t drop it if it’s already inside you. No, I’ve never heard that anyone does that to warm snow. In winter survival mode you can use snow as insulation to keep you warmer than you would be if exposed to the much colder air. But no one warms up snow with their bodies; it’s about as wrong a step as you can possibly take if you’re trying to stay warm. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/50 "2014-02-10T12:56:56Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > Snow looks nice and pure and clean and white. But… (of course) …I read somewhere…are there some kind of INSECTS that live and breed on top of that nice clean white snow? Here? In Antarctica? In the Arctic Circle? You can see [snow fleas](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_flea) on a sunny day in New England, but they’re not hard to avoid. Besides, they’re additional protein. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/51 "2014-02-10T13:44:23Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > No, I’ve never heard that anyone does that to warm snow. In winter survival mode you can use snow as insulation to keep you warmer than you would be if exposed to the much colder air. But no one warms up snow with their bodies; it’s about as wrong a step as you can possibly take if you’re trying to stay warm. Here you go, take your pick: > **[How to melt snow with Body heat](http://www.fitclimb.com/video/how-to-melt-snow-with-body)** > > Melting snow using body heat is an easy way to stay hydrated in winter conditions outdoors. It doesn't take much energy, time, and allows a survivor or climber… > **[Learn Whether It's Safe to Drink Rain Water — and the Risks If You Do](https://www.thoughtco.com/can-you-drink-rain-water-609422)** > > Here's a look at whether or not it's safe to drink rainwater, the risks, and ways to improve rainwater quality to make it healthier to drink. > **[How to find food and water in a cold weather survival situation](https://www.survivalknifeexperts.com/blogs/the-survival-guide-blog/11611577-how-to-find-food-and-water-in-a-cold-weather-survival-situation)** > > Food and water are both necessary for survival whether you’re in the middle of Manhattan or stranded in the wilderness. The only difference is that it’s easier to “forage” for these basic necessities in a civilized setting than it is in a survival... [http://cheaperthandirt.com/blog/?p=51662](http://cheaperthandirt.com/blog/?p=51662) [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=17089402&postcount=34](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=17089402&postcount=34) ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/52 "2014-02-10T13:50:30Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Here you go, take your pick: > > [How to melt snow with Body heat - FitClimb](http://www.fitclimb.com/video/how-to-melt-snow-with-body) > > [Is Rain Water Clean and Safe to Drink?](http://survival.about.com/od/1/a/How-To-Find-And-Purify-Water-In-The-Winter.htm) > > [How to find food and water in a cold weather survival situation – Survival Knife Experts](http://www.survivalknifeexperts.com/blogs/the-survival-guide-blog/11611577-how-to-find-food-and-water-in-a-cold-weather-survival-situation) > > [http://cheaperthandirt.com/blog/?p=51662](http://cheaperthandirt.com/blog/?p=51662) > > [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=17089402&postcount=34](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=17089402&postcount=34) It still think it’s extremely poor advice. If you have no other options and can otherwise keep your body warm (food, heat source, etc) then it’s not going to do you much harm. But there are much better ways to warm water with a small stove or fire than to risk hypothermia like that. ---
**Author:** ![slaphead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9bcb4/32.png) [@slaphead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slaphead)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/53 "2014-02-10T14:24:06Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I was always taught that you never eat the first snow. I do not remember why. Well, if one were to (hypothetically, of course) try to lick the first flakes of the year off the angle-iron top of the playground fence when it’s several degrees below freezing, one might potentially end up with one’s tongue frozen to the metal and squalling frantically for the attention of the teacher allocated to sponge&bucket-of-warm-water duty. After being unfrozen from the fence, one might then be able to return to flake-licking since with that little bit of practice one would be reasonably safe from any freezing incidents. Unless one were, say distracted by a do-goody classmate shouting at one to stop. After being unfrozen twice, however, the experience level would be so high there is virtually no freeing risk whatsoever, unless one were to e.g. participate in a snowflake-licking race and get a bit over-competitive. Unfortunately teachers are sometimes unreasonable people. They may sometimes, after spending a morning rushing hither and yon unfreezing small children from fences, over-react ludicrously to the same child getting stuck to a fence three times in 10 minutes and make them go and sit in the naughty corner. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/54 "2014-02-10T14:38:34Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > It still think it’s extremely poor advice. If you have no other options and can otherwise keep your body warm (food, heat source, etc) then it’s not going to do you much harm. But there are much better ways to warm water with a small stove or fire than to risk hypothermia like that. You are certainly welcome to think it’s extremely poor advice. But in a General Questions thread, it’s simply incorrect to say: > [@Telemark](#): > > But no one warms up snow with their bodies; it’s about as wrong a step as you can possibly take if you’re trying to stay warm. Some do, and now you’ve heard of it. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/55 "2014-02-10T14:47:00Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > Do they treat wells and streams? No. There are fish in your well? ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/56 "2014-02-10T14:49:52Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > You are certainly welcome to think it’s extremely poor advice. But in a General Questions thread, it’s simply incorrect to say: > Some do, and now you’ve heard of it. I can also link to videos of people jumping off of bridges to kill themselves - that doesn’t make it a good idea. Using your body to melt snow in a survival sitution is bad advice and dangerous. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/57 "2014-02-10T15:02:21Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Some do, and now you’ve heard of it. But most don’t for the reasons I stated. You can last for multiple days without water, but hypothermia can be a fairly quick death sentence. Most Wilderness First Aid courses no longer even recommend getting in a sleeping bag with someone to keep them warm because all it does is makes the heat source colder and risks hypothermia without doing anything for the victim. One of the very first things you do in a winter survival situation is to insulate your body from the snow and ground to avoid heat loss which happens very quickly. Putting snow next to the body in an attempt to warm the snow makes no sense. Either you melt snow using an outside heat source or you fuel your body and use internal heat. You can come up with a scenario where you are warm, insulated from the outside, well fed, and have a good heat source where your body is the only way to melt snow and you are unlikely to do yourself any harm. But why bother? In that situation you eat the snow and do jumping jacks. I don’t recognize the sources for those links. I’ve never heard of this type of advice from the Wilderness First Aid courses I’ve taken (SOLO, WMA) and it seems to go against some of the basic principles of cold weather survival. I have no doubt that some folks recommend it, thank you for the citations. But I maintain that they are wrong. ---
**Author:** ![FluffyBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecb155/32.png) [@FluffyBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FluffyBob)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/58 "2014-02-10T15:17:39Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > Snow looks nice and pure and clean and white. But… (of course) …I read somewhere…are there some kind of INSECTS that live and breed on top of that nice clean white snow? Here? In Antarctica? In the Arctic Circle? [These little guys](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chionea) They have anti freeze blood! You see them in the Canadian Rockies, wandering around on the snow between the trees. It can be pretty damn cold and they will be trundling along. I try not to avoid them because they can freeze up if disturbed (I don’t know if for real or defensive) but often there are so many of them you end up crushing them. There is also [Watermelon Snow](https://www.google.ca/search?q=watermelon+snow&rlz=1C1GIGM_en-GBCA550CA550&espv=210&es_sm=122&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=OOr4UuipE9HCoASR94DwCw&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1394&bih=876) which is just silly but real none the less. I have only seen this in spring and summer on those lovely patches of snow that hang around in the mountains making them so pretty. And yes, it really does smell like watermelon, and it really is red, and no way am I tasting it. Looking back to see you foot prints turning red in the snow is pretty awesome. And yes Snow Cream is most excellent. Best made with the coldest fluffiest champagne powder you can find and given to the woman that has graciously been dragged along on your ski trip. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/59 "2014-02-10T18:09:07Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Survivalists will sometimes place bags of snow close to their body to warm them to liquid before drinking - this allows them better control of their heat loss. If they are getting too cold, they can drop the snow. Can’t drop it if it’s already inside you. > [@Telemark](#): > > No, I’ve never heard that anyone does that to warm snow. In winter survival mode you can use snow as insulation to keep you warmer than you would be if exposed to the much colder air. But no one warms up snow with their bodies; it’s about as wrong a step as you can possibly take if you’re trying to stay warm. Regarding hypothermia and hydration, there is a difference between winter outdoor recreation and winter survival mode. With winter outdoor recreation, the challenge is to both avoid overheating or overcooling, and to stay hydrated. In winter survival mode, the challenge is to identify immediate threats to life and to mitigate them in priority. When in winter survival mode, a person suffering from hypothermia should not put something cold against his or her body, for hypothermia will lead to death far sooner than dehydration. When hypothermia is not an issue, using body heat to melt snow is easy, provides water in good quantity, and does not require fussing with fire. (I realize that fire --wood or gas – is the norm for base camping, and more power to the folks who are into that for it really is terrific, but I am much more into low impact skiing, so I don’t like to make fires from wood, and I don’t like to carry a stove and fuel.) For example, when I am earning my turns, I am far warmer ascending the slope than when I ski down the slope. When ascending, my vents are open to let excess heat dissipate, and my body uses up its water at a fairly high rate. I carry a wide-mouth camel back inside my outer layer of clothing (or second layer if it is very cold) which I replenish with snow after each time I drink from it. When I climb there is no need to conserve heat, so using my body heat to thaw snow is an effective use of my energy. By doing this I keep constantly rehydrated (which is vital) without risking hypothermia (which is even more vital). Since this removes any need to avoid using body heat to thaw snow during regular (non-survival mode) outdoor winter recreation, I prefer to drink water in quantity (about 3/4 of a litre an hour when exerting myself) rather than to eat snow, for as much as I like eating snow, it is a bit of an embuggerance to have to constantly eat snow in significant amounts (fresh snow might have a water density of 10-20 %, which means having to eat a hell of a lot of snow to keep rehydrated) and to deal with ice cream headaches from having too many handsful too quickly. Hypothermia is not the only thing to worry about. Am dressed for the changing conditions (neither too hot nor too cold), am I hydrated, are my electolytes in balance, am I eating enough to keep my energy level high? If I fail to keep on top of any of these things, then I will run into trouble, moving from outdoor winter recreation to winter survival mode and adjust my actions accordingly. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2014, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826/60 "2014-02-10T18:28:59Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Survivalists will sometimes place bags of snow close to their body to warm them to liquid before drinking - this allows them better control of their heat loss. If they are getting too cold, they can drop the snow. Can’t drop it if it’s already inside you. > [@Telemark](#): > > No, I’ve never heard that anyone does that to warm snow. In winter survival mode you can use snow as insulation to keep you warmer than you would be if exposed to the much colder air. But no one warms up snow with their bodies; it’s about as wrong a step as you can possibly take if you’re trying to stay warm. Regarding hypothermia and hydration, there is a big difference between winter outdoor recreation and winter survival mode. With winter outdoor recreation, the challenge is to keep one’s body properly functioning (avoiding overheating or overcooling, keeping hydrated, maintaining electrolyte balance, and maintaining energy level). In winter survival mode, the challenge is to identify immediate threats to life and to mitigate them in priority. Think of it this way: outdoor winter recreation is about balance between various factors ranging from survival to fun and comfort; winter survival mode is about strict priorities. If balance is lost, strict priorities must be followed, requiring lower priorities to be sacrificed to higher priorities so as to better one’s chance at surviving. When in winter survival mode, a person suffering from hypothermia should not put something cold against his or her body, for hypothermia will lead to death far sooner than dehydration. When hypothermia is not an issue, using body heat to melt snow is easy, provides water in good quantity, and does not require fussing with fire. (I realize that fire --wood or gas – is the norm for base camping, and more power to the folks who are into that for it really is terrific, but I am much more into low impact skiing, so I don’t like to make fires from wood, and I don’t like to carry a stove and fuel.) For example, when I am earning my turns, I am far warmer ascending the slope than when I ski down the slope. When ascending, my vents are open to let excess heat dissipate, and my body uses up its water at a fairly high rate. I carry a wide-mouth camelback inside my outer layer of clothing (or second layer when it is very cold) which I replenish with snow after each time I drink from it. When I climb there is no need to conserve excess heat, so using my excess body heat to thaw snow is an effective use of my energy. By doing this I keep constantly rehydrated (which is vital) without risking hypothermia (which is even more vital). Since this removes any need to avoid using body heat to thaw snow during regular (non-survival mode) outdoor winter recreation, I prefer to drink water in quantity (about 1/2 to 3/4 of a litre an hour when exerting myself) rather than to eat snow, for as much as I like eating snow, it is a bit of an embuggerance to have to constantly eat snow in significant amounts (fresh snow might have a water density of 10-20 %, which means having to eat a hell of a lot of snow to keep rehydrated), and to deal with ice cream headaches from having too many handsful too quickly. Hypothermia is not the only thing to worry about. Am dressed for the changing conditions (neither too hot nor too cold), am I hydrated, are my electolytes in balance, am I eating enough to keep my energy level high? If I fail to keep on top of any of these things, then I will run into trouble, moving from outdoor winter recreation to winter survival mode, which will require me to adjust my actions accordingly. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-a-california-boy-why-not-eat-snow/680826.md?page=4)