# Is poop poisonous? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 31, 2003, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918 "2003-12-31T08:38:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Peppy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c37758/32.png) [@Peppy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peppy)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/1 "2003-12-31T08:38:46Z")
Can eating a chunk of poop make me sick? Reasons for asking: Many animals eat poop. Dogs for one. Poop comes from me. Ergo it was already inside me therefore, technically, safe to re-put inside me. Many weird porn sites have women ingesting poop. Fresh stock I might add. My guess is poop is bad for you to eat. The stink is nature’s deterrent. Is poop like urine, sterile until it comes into contact with the exit portal? And if it’s not really bad for you, should the competitors on Fear Factor not eat a chunk of poop in lieu of say cow brains or chicken heart (Child’s play!) Disclaimer re: weird sites. I was perusing a standard porn site for enlightening articles about the upcoming election when a pop-up appeared that had the instructions “DO NOT CLICK HERE” I clicked there. ---
**Author:** ![gluteus\_maximus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f17d59/32.png) [@gluteus\_maximus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gluteus_maximus)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/2 "2003-12-31T09:11:12Z")
Just a short, preliminary hijack to check on a possible typo… > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Peppy \* > \*\* > Disclaimer re: weird sites. I was perusing a standard porn site for enlightening articles about the upcoming election when a pop-up appeared that had the instructions “DO NOT CLICK HERE” > > I clicked there. \*\* You meant to type “the upcoming **erection** ”, right? I mean, why would anyone peruse a porn site for election articles? Oh, and if you click on pop-ups with instructions that say “DO NOT…”, it hardly makes sense for us to tell you “DO NOT EAT YOUR POOP”, now, does it? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/3 "2003-12-31T09:14:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Peppy \* > \*\*Can eating a chunk of poop make me sick? \*\*Very; it could even kill you. > [@](#): > > \*\*Poop comes from me. Ergo it was already inside me therefore, technically, safe to re-put inside me. \*\*You don’t think that the fact of your body trying to get rid of it might be a clue? > [@](#): > > \*\*Is poop like urine, sterile until it comes into contact with the exit portal? \*\*Absolutely not; it contains a lot of bacteria that, although they are an essential part of your digestive processes, they belong in the intestines, not the stomach and will wreak absolute havoc if they are introduced to the top end of your digestive system - one of the chief causes of food poisoning is contamination of food by fecal bacteria. Urine is sterile (in most cases), but sterile does not equal ‘good to drink’ (drain cleaner is sterile, radioactive waster is sterile) - urine contains stuff that your body has gone to quite some trouble to remove from your system. Cooking poop thoroughly will kill the bacteria (although it might still be chemically toxic), but anyway, how would you explain this to your mother? ---
**Author:** ![heresiarch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@heresiarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/heresiarch)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/4 "2003-12-31T09:16:24Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Peppy Is poop like urine, sterile until it comes into contact with the exit portal?_ No, poop ain’t sterile. It’s chock full of bacteria. E. coli, for instance, which causes food poisoning. Just a small amount of fecal matter can cause dysentry and hepatitis. Maybe “cause” isn’t exactly the right word. Substitute “facilitate the spread of…”. ---
**Author:** ![netscape\_6](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8c91f0/32.png) [@netscape\_6](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/netscape_6)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/5 "2003-12-31T12:31:45Z")
I’m not argueing that humans can eat, but how do dogs do it safely? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/6 "2003-12-31T12:37:06Z")
I’ve never seen dogs eat their own poop, but I have seen them eat horse and cattle manure. I would venture to suggest that dogs: a) Don’t know any better. b) Wouldn’t mentally connect an upset stomach with having eaten excrement. c) Have evolved some kind of resistance (after all, they can eat rotten meat too). d) Like the taste. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/7 "2003-12-31T16:30:19Z")
Considering the fact dogs also frequently run their tongue over their butthole in washcloth manner, they’re probably not the best to turn to for sanitary inspiration now, are they? Additionally, as mentioned it ain’t the “exit portal” that taints the poop. Try reversing that logic for a more reasonable understanding of the process. ---
**Author:** ![St.Urho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8e7dd6/32.png) [@St.Urho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/St.Urho)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/8 "2003-12-31T17:13:03Z")
In addition to the previously mentioned _e. coli_, Hepatitis A is also transmitted by oral-fecal contact. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/9 "2003-12-31T20:18:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mangetout \* > **one of the chief causes of food poisoning is contamination of food by fecal bacteria** Yes. Wash your hands, people! If we all washed our hands (hot water and soap; a quick rinse with “magic water” does nothing) on a regular basis, say once an hour, we would all be a lot healthier. This habit would cut down not just on fecal contamination but also on transmission of viruses and bacteria like those that cause flu, strep, etc. Wash your hands! Oh, and don’t eat poop. Or if you do, wash your hands afterwards. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/10 "2003-12-31T20:55:53Z")
Poop is not a food group. What, you want hate mail from your Dentist? ---
**Author:** ![kpm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c57346/32.png) [@kpm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kpm)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/11 "2003-12-31T20:56:33Z")
If you have a dog with puppies, the mother dog will eat the poop of the puppies when they are young. I guess it has something to do with keeping the area clean where they stay. I believe the mother dog quits doing that as soon as they start on solid food which can be as early as 3 weeks old. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/12 "2003-12-31T21:52:23Z")
> [@](#): > > Cooking poop thoroughly will kill the bacteria (although it might still be chemically toxic), but anyway, how would you explain this to your mother? Don’t know about dogs, but some animals, like elephants, are born lacking certain organisms in their digestive tract that are needed in order to process their normal food. They get these organisms by eating some of their mom’s poop. So, for these animals, **not** eating poop might be considered poisonous. So perhaps your mother would understand if you told her you were eating some of her poop. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2003, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/13 "2003-12-31T21:58:34Z")
Isn’t that behaviour mostly confined to herbivores? But you’re right, maybe she would be flattered, but how would you go about collecting it? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2004, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/14 "2004-01-01T15:30:55Z")
So, those porn sites of women eating poop: do those women go offscreen and hurl their guts out after a day’s shooting? Do they take antibiotics before a big shoot? Or do they just do their thing and hope for the best? (Hey, no one ever said the porn industry was the most disease-free industry!) ---
**Author:** ![Canadjun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/76d3ee/32.png) [@Canadjun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Canadjun)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2004, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/15 "2004-01-02T02:32:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by heresiarch \* > \*\*No, poop ain’t sterile. It’s chock full of bacteria. E. coli, for instance, which causes food poisoning. > > Just a small amount of fecal matter can cause dysentry and hepatitis. Maybe “cause” isn’t exactly the right word. Substitute “facilitate the spread of…”. \*\* The usual variety of E. Coli that we all have does **not** cause food poisoning. We’ve all got it, and it had to get in us in the first place. It is one **particular** variety of E. Coli (E. Coli O157:H7) that causes a particularly nasty, but uncommon, kind of food poisoning. However, it is most emphatically true that there are lots of bugs out there that are spread by fecal transmission and that are much more likely causes of food poisoning as well as other unpleasant illnesses like hepatitis and typhoid, so exposing yourself to fecal matter unnecessarily is rather unwise. ---
**Author:** ![Gremlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df788c/32.png) [@Gremlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gremlyn)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2004, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/16 "2004-01-02T02:47:00Z")
Ya know, strangely enough, I’ve wondered that too… because I also was exposed to the entire porn w/ poop experience a few years ago… I never could or will understand how on earth that would be appealing but oh well. But dogs, man… they think a baby poop diaper is major cruisine… oh and the kitty litter box too… sheesh. :{ Grem ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2004, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/17 "2004-01-02T05:26:14Z")
Regarding the porn stars and dogs… Eating poop won’t kill you or even make you sick every single time you do it. Nothing’s ever 100%. It’s just a heck of a lot more dangerous than, say, eating a carrot. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2004, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/18 "2004-01-02T07:12:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dmartin \* > \*\*The usual variety of E. Coli that we all have does **not** cause food poisoning. We’ve all got it, and it had to get in us in the first place. \*\* It isn’t good in the stomach though; the fact that it exists somewhere in our bodies naturally does not make it safe to put large amounts of it in our mouths. ---
**Author:** ![MFitz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@MFitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MFitz)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2004, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/19 "2004-01-02T08:18:23Z")
Actually, I seem to recall seeing an Al Qaeda “recipe” in a manual that was partially printed including poop with noodles. This poisonous casserole was to be left out in the heat for a couple of days as well. It said death was virtually 100% if enough was eaten and was very painful. I think it was Time magazine last year. MFitz ---
**Author:** ![One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/838e76/32.png) [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2004, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918/20 "2004-01-02T10:52:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Smeghead \* > \*\*Regarding the porn stars and dogs… > > Eating poop won’t kill you or even make you sick every single time you do it. Nothing’s ever 100%. It’s just a heck of a lot more dangerous than, say, eating a carrot. \*\* This cracked me up (pun intended) brings a whole new meaning to the phrase _what’s up doc?_ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-poop-poisonous/221918.md?page=2)