Is human flesh actually green?

Factual Questions
1

This is going to sound weird.
And it is.

A long time ago, in a place a miles away, a pretty girl told me that humans (and indeed most meat) is actually naturally green. Our blood is red, obviously, but if you took a chunk from someone it would be green, then change to red over time or with treatment.
I thought she was wrong.

Then I read Stephen King’s On Writing a few years ago, and he mentioned his mother describing a jumper to him, and referred to the colour green.

I saw a picture of a snake bite the other day, and the deepest part of the wound was a greenish colour. Had the previous two incidences not occurred, I would have written it off as infection.

So, what is the Straightdope?

2

I’ve seen my share of bodies and pieces of bodies. The meat from a human is not green.

3

I too have seen my share (working in histotechnology lab) - no green except for maybe parts of the liver (the bile, you know). Body parts do actually look really cool, though (except the pails of breast tissue removed from old ladies).

4

Red and white when opened up by a sudden trauma.

5

It depends on the cooking method.

(Pass me some Soylent, would you?)

6

Soylent green is soy and lentils! :eek:

7

I do not like Green eggs and man
I do not like them in the pan
I do not want it from the embalmer
I do not want it, Jeffrey Dahmer.

8

It will turn green eventually, but so will chicken and beef and everything else if it goes rotten in the right way.

9

(Standing and clapping) Bra-VOH!!:smiley:

10

“They’re made out of meat.”
“Meat?”
“Meat. They’re made out of meat.”
“Meat?”
“Yes, thinking meat! Conscious meat! Loving meat. Dreaming meat. The meat is the whole deal! Are you beginning to get the picture or do I have to start all over?”
“Omigod. You’re serious then. They’re made out of meat.”

CMC fnord!

I’m so glad I’m not the only cannibal on the board. :smiley: Anything still stuck in there?

11

Huh.

Seems to be complete agreement on this on.

Must be just us Irish.

12

Yes, but in the daylight it looks various shades of tan because humans sparkle.

13

I have seen quite a few Dead People and there’s no green.

Turtle meat is a little green, however.

14

if the wound is infected and angry, it might turn green, gain some mass in the process and starts smashing things. that would be a good time to run.

15

**Sweeney Todd:
***Is that squire,
On the fire?

***Mrs Lovett:
***Mercy no, sir,
Look closer,
You’ll notice it’s grocer!

***Sweeney Todd:
***Looks thicker,
More like vicar!

***Mrs Lovett:
**No, it has to be grocer –
It’s green!

16

If you removed all the elements that made it red, it would no longer be red, and instead would be… probably greenish. The tonal range of flesh and skin is slightly greenish reds.

17

I went on a carnival ride once. Got really sick and lost everthing in my stomachand shortly felt fine. As I was walking around, I noticed people looking at me oddly.

Finally, about 5 minutes later a total stranger stops me and says “Dude, you are GREEN!”. Now if a total stranger tells you something like that its gotta be bad.

Well, I hit the nearest bathroom and sure enough, my face looked quite green. I guess it was from being flush from being sick.

I certainly now understand where the phrase “green behind/in? the gills” came from.

18

When bodies decay they turn greenish. I just watched WWII in Color HD on History and there’s a fair amount of brownish and greenish corpses. At least in parts.

19

I imagine it would look like some of the truely white fish, which is white but does have a slight grey/green tint.

20

I think the expression is “green around the gills” or “green about the gills” . . . not that either makes any sense.