Picking Your Nose Is Good for the Health, Experts Say
Picking your nose and eating the snot as what some children do may not be as unhealthy and unhygienic as they may seem to be. In fact, snot maybe good for the health, experts say.
A study made by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University found that snot acts as a barrier against germs that prevents teeth from forming cavities. The research was published in the Applied and Environmental Microbiology journal.
The study found that snot contains salivary mucins, which helps to protect teeth from the bacteria Streptococus mutans causing cavities.
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According to the researchers' findings, the mucins do not kill the bacteria unlike other dental hygiene products such as toothpaste and mouthwash. Instead, it acts like a protective layer on the tooth to prevent the bacteria from secreting acids that break down the enamel found on teeth.
The study also suggested that snot can protect the body from ulcer, respiratory infections, and even HIV.
With the findings, the experts are now looking into creating a synthetic mucus that can be added into toothpaste to mimic its benefits and bring it to the household, minus the nose-picking.
Katharina Ribbeck, assistant professor from the MIT's Department of Biological engineering and co-author of the study, suggested that snot may be a better alternative than antibiotics. The reason for this is that it is less intrusive unlike needles from injections and its usage is "not necessarily to resolve infections but to stabilize or prevent" it, she told Ozy.
Meanwhile, Austrian lung specialist Prof. Friedrich Bischinger believes that people who pick snot from their noses are more in tune with their body and lead a healthy and happier life.
Because of the snot's benefits, he suggested that picking noses should not be discouraged among children.
Bischinger also noted that, "eating the dry remains of what you pull out is a great way of strengthening the body's immune system."
"In terms of the immune system, the nose is a filter in which a great deal of bacteria are collected, and when this mixture arrives in the intestines it works just like medicine," he added.
