The latest health advice from TikTok is that you should be eating DIRT?
Things like this makes it harder to figure out if these wellness influencers are just trying to prank everybody or if they are serious.
In this case, there is even a term for the people who eat dirt, “crunchers.” The claim is that the dirt is loaded with all kinds of minerals that are good for you. The practice can reportedly help with many things including improving gut health, reducing wrinkles and curing acne. However, experts warn it could be dangerous.
To begin with, you don’t just walk out back and grab a handful of soil from your yard for a snack. That dirt is likely chock-full of chemicals, rocks, and rusty nails. You have to BUY special dirt called “biodynamic soil.”
Most “crunchers” prefer edible chunks of clay for their food as seen in the video below. Sellers try to make it sound better by using language like “medium hard crunch” and “pleasant earthy taste.”
When asked, a nutritionist said it was “probably not” good advice to eat dirt. There is no scientific data to support the health claims. Additionally, with no regulation on the clay, there are serious concerns they could contain heavy metals like mercury and lead.
By: Buck Stevens
