# Snot, and things you never wanted to know **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 5, 2006, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144 "2006-03-05T16:56:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![GawnFishin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GawnFishin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GawnFishin)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/1 "2006-03-05T16:56:50Z")
We’ve all heard the joke, Q: what’s the difference between snot and broccoli? A: Kids wont eat broccoli. I’m wondering if kids will eat snot how many calories are they getting? I searched [broccoli](http://www.calorie-count.com/calories/item.php?item_id=11095&size=2) and found that half a cup has approximately 26 calories. I searched Google and found that the search term “calories in snot” is apparently an [“oddball”](http://www.therestlessmouse.com/wob_search.shtml) search term. I searched the dope and found lots of interesting threads contain the word [snot](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/search.php?searchid=1503114) but no answer as to the number of calories. So, my question for Dopers to ponder, how many calories in half a cup of snot? ---
**Author:** ![GawnFishin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GawnFishin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GawnFishin)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2006, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/2 "2006-03-07T16:30:40Z")
I searched again and [that no thread in General Questions with snot in the title has ever gone without getting at least one reply. Are there none willing to help search for the answers I seek? Has The Straight Dope become less than what it once was? [url=http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=198659] > [@ultrafilter](#): > > Christ. You really can get any question answered here, can’t you? ](]found[/url) Maybe, but not about snot. I refues to let this thread be blown off and discarded like a used tissue without at least one reply! Or to sum up this post in one word - bump. ---
**Author:** ![PatriotX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c4cdca/32.png) [@PatriotX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatriotX)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2006, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/3 "2006-03-07T17:16:35Z")
Does snot digest? Isn’t it already present throughout the alimentary canal? ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2006, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/4 "2006-03-07T17:54:17Z")
> [@PatriotX](#): > > Does snot digest? Isn’t it already present throughout the alimentary canal? It is mostly incorporated into the dung in the colon. ---
**Author:** ![GawnFishin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GawnFishin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GawnFishin)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/5 "2006-03-08T00:15:32Z")
> [@PatriotX](#): > > Does snot digest? Isn’t it already present throughout the alimentary canal? I’m not asking if it digests or not but, how many calories it would contain. Like the half cup of broccoli, which the boy is not going to eat will still have 26 calories of potential energy. I’m going to assume that a half a cup of snot will still hold some potential energy. ---
**Author:** ![xbuckeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9e8a1a/32.png) [@xbuckeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xbuckeye)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/6 "2006-03-08T02:24:50Z")
sounds like you’ll have to collect snot and burn it in a bomb calorimeter and measure the susiquent change in temperature. Or determine the chemical makeup of snot and use the whole 4,4,9,7 conversion thing. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/7 "2006-03-08T02:43:54Z")
Calories in snot? Not a lot. It’s mostly water and polysaccharides. Polysaccharides are about 4 calories per gram of dry weight. I’d estimate really, really dried boogers would be about 4 calories per gram then. There ya go! ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/8 "2006-03-08T04:26:04Z")
Mucus is usually about 95% water and 5% salts and glycoproteins. > **[Biochemistry of airway mucus secretions - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7428951/?dopt=Abstract)** > > Tracheobronchial secretions are a complex mixture of secretory fluids derived from sources within the lung. Important constituents include the mucous glycoproteins, other secretory proteins, serum proteins, lipids, salts; water makes up 95% of mucus... Half a cup of snot, 125 mL, would thus contain perhaps 6.25 grams of glycoprotein and 25 calories. ---
**Author:** ![Caught\_Work](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/919ad9/32.png) [@Caught\_Work](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caught_Work)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/9 "2006-03-08T08:52:22Z")
Broccoli = 26 calories. Snot = 25 calories. There goes the diet 😃 :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Meeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Meeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meeko)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/10 "2006-03-08T11:30:06Z")
> [@GawnFishin'](#): > > I searched again and that no thread in General Questions with snot in the title has ever gone without getting at least one reply. Are there none willing to help search for the answers I seek? Has The Straight Dope become less than what it once was? > [url=http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=198659] > Maybe, but not about snot. I refues to let this thread be blown off and discarded like a used tissue without at least one reply! > > Or to sum up this post in one word - bump. Then again, I would argue that christ could get answers to questions anywhere, if he still has to ask. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![GawnFishin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@GawnFishin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GawnFishin)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snot-and-things-you-never-wanted-to-know/347144/11 "2006-03-08T15:10:20Z")
> [@xbuckeye](#): > > sounds like you’ll have to collect snot and burn it in a bomb calorimeter and measure the susiquent change in temperature. Or determine the chemical makeup of snot and use the whole 4,4,9,7 conversion thing. T’is-not I who has the leaky proboscis but my son. His production of snot is a liitle slow but I’m working on collecting the half cup necessary. > [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > Calories in snot? Not a lot.\ More than zero, even Jello has calories and it’s also mostly water. 🙂 > [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Mucus is usually about 95% water and 5% salts and glycoproteins. > > [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...1&dopt=Abstract](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...1&dopt=Abstract) > > Half a cup of snot, 125 mL, would thus contain perhaps 6.25 grams of glycoprotein and 25 calories. I got the 95% water from the [what’s in snot](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=316760) thread and the link to [“The Masters speaks”](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a971017.html) but I didn’t know the breakdown of the remaining five percent. Thank you. > [@Caught@Work](#): > > Broccoli = 26 calories. > Snot = 25 calories. > > There goes the diet 😃 :eek: Seem to me 26 calories not so good 25 calories even worse, just don’t eat anything with less than say 30 calories. 😃 > [@Meeko](#): > > Then again, I would argue that christ could get answers to questions anywhere, if he still has to ask. 🙂 Who do you think thought of this question? We were kickin’ back puffing on a fatty when I told the joke in the OP. He laughed so hard he blew a decent sized green one out his left nostril, turned to me and said “How many calories in snot?” :o