Mucophagy: It ‘Snot’ What You Think

It goes by many names: snot, booger, gunk, slime, glop. Disreputable, detested but secretly desired, martyred on tissues and in basins when actually this gooey gold inside our nose has the power to combat cavities, the ability to prevent diseases, and even the potential to help us fight HIV! All we need to do is…eat it.

This infamous slime, otherwise known as nasal mucus, has been rummaged throughout history. Some ancient Indian scriptures even indicate the benefits of mucophagy (the act of ingesting mucus) believing that it enhances the sense of smell and complexion.

Thankfully, today we have a more factual explanation of the benefits of this phenomenon. While almost 2 liters of mucus drains in our guts daily, it is eating the dried snot from our nose that can act as a potential vaccine. The dried mucus, like a vaccine, contains many pathogens. When eaten, it enters the alimentary canal and the concentrated hydrochloric acid present there kills most pathogens and weakens the remaining. These residual pathogens then enter the bloodstream where lymphocytes start producing antibodies, breaking them down further. The extra antibodies are stored for a future attack, helping our immune system respond faster. Contrary to this, however, inhaling pathogens can be extremely harmful as they don’t go through our stomach where the acid can neutralize these microbes.

Dr. Joseph Mercola has an interesting take on why we should eat our snot. The “Hygiene Hypothesis” states that the number of diseases has tripled in the past few decades because our habitat has become clearer with each passing year. One of the ways to build up our defense system is to eat boogers to increase our supply of antibodies. Other scientists like Scott Napper and Dr. Fredrick Bissinger tread on similar beliefs, stating that eating boogers can shield us from certain respiratory diseases and prove power-packed immunity shots.

Studies claim that eating boogers can be especially beneficial to children as it shields teeth from cavities. It contains salivary mucins that help in the breakdown of carbohydrates, reducing nutrients required for bacteria to survive, and sweet glycoproteins, making it a treat for children. C. Claiborne Ray of the New York Times supports this claim by stating, “mucin includes a surface element that is essentially sugar.” No wonder, many researchers are trying to produce artificial mucus and induce it into chewing gums and kinds of toothpaste!

Another prospective outcome of mucophagy could be that it can ward off HIV. There has been no study to prove this so far, but there is some evidence that glycoprotein can help the antibodies to respond more efficiently. After the antibodies attack the HIV cells, the cells decay, fooling the immune system. It is the vigilant glycoprotein that engulfs them, preventing any further damage to the body. As our snot contains this form of protein, it can be a promising contender to fight HIV if we start eating it at an early age.

Unfortunately, most of the studies on the hidden potential of boogers remain a hypothesis. There is not enough evidence as to which types of maladies can be prevented by eating them as researchers have not tested these theories in the human body environment. Perhaps there aren’t any volunteers yet to take the ‘drill’. What the future beholds for booger-binging is tough to say, for any research on it would mean literally binging on it. Would mucophagy remain an ‘idler’s penchant’ or would it become the next greatest scientific discovery? Only time and guts would tell.