I was munching out of a package of beef jerky – not really looking, just gabbing pieces by feel and shoving them into my mouth while driving. Suddenly I felt something really odd in my mouth, and I pulled out what looked like a square package of sugar, except with a foil wrap rather than a paper one. On this little package, it says DO NOT EAT, and DO NOT MICROWAVE, neither of which are noted on the jerky package, and it also says OXYGEN ABSORBER. I figure it’s some type of desiccant, though I thought it odd it would absorb oxygen rather than moisture.
Anyway, had I not noticed and chomped it down, what kind of trouble would I be in? I’m guessing the microwave warning would be as much about the metal foil as anything else, but would a common desiccant have issues with them?
It’s an oxygen absorber which acts as a preservative. Basically, it uses a chemical reaction to glom on to all the oxygen in the bag, leaving only (or mostly) nitrogen behind. Few bacteria can live without oxygen, so bacterial spoilage is less likely. It also slows down the oxygenation of the fats in the jerky, making them not go rancid so quickly. If you’ve ever accidentally eaten rancid beef jerky, you won’t soon forget it.
It’s not going to kill you to swallow one. I wouldn’t make them into a casserole or anything, but just one won’t harm a full grown adult. Iron toxicty starts to be a problem around 10mg/kg of body weight, far more than is in a packet, or even several packets.
I seem to recall someone spilling one of the moisture absorbing ones into a bowl of salsa and then someone else ate it and wound up needing to call poison control. But it was on Seinfeld so it probably wasn’t checked for scientific accuracy.
The moisture absorbing ones (desiccants) also won’t hurt you at small doses - like a packet - but if you were to swallow a large amount, it could theoretically swell enough to block up your GI tract. The goo is pretty soft, though, like Metamucil. Probably wouldn’t actually harm you, as long as you were well hydrated.
However, my dad worked with superabsorbent powders like silica gel in his job, before there was much safety stuff written about them. They didn’t use masks or respirators like they do today. His lungs are full of goo that cannot be extracted. It’s pretty bad, and it’s likely that contributed a great deal to his COPD and will be what kills him eventually. It’s a slow process, though, not an acute poisoning.
