What's in Those Packets That Say 'Do Not Eat'? (And Why Shouldn't I Eat It?)
Vložit
- čas přidán 3. 11. 2014
- Quick Questions explains what’s in those little packets you find in packaged food, bottles of pills, and leather goods, and why you should do what the label says and not eat them.
Hosted by: Michael Aranda
----------
Like SciShow? Want to help support us, and also get things to put on your walls, cover your torso and hold your liquids? Check out our awesome products over at DFTBA Records: dftba.com/collections/scishow
Or help support us by subscribing to our page on Subbable: subbable.com/scishow
----------
Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet?
Facebook: / scishow
Twitter: / scishow
Tumblr: / scishow
Thanks Tank Tumblr: / thankstank
Sources:
health.howstuffworks.com/human...
science.howstuffworks.com/inno...
so I did what you said and it was a little difficult but that leather purse was delicious
What does it taste like
like purse
rly dude
rly
dry cow skin. as I said before, delicious!
oh ok I should try
Better than throwing them away, hoard the packets and use them in storage. Pair of nice shoes you only wear on special occasions? Packet of silica. Precious books, letters, or otherwise paper products that would be damaged by moisture? Packet of silica. In theory, if you had enough of the beads you could use them instead of 'the rice trick' to dry out electronics.
That's a really good idea.
If you had enough of them you could dry out an ocean.
Laura, desiccants have to be "recharged" after they are left to the open air. After they are exposed to relative humidity for a couple of hours their effectiveness wears off quite considerably. In manufacturing they hold desiccant packs in specialized cabinets preventing moisture from getting in. If you save them at relative humidity, you will have to dry them (bake at a low temperature) before reuse.
Edward Charbeneau What if kept in a dry storage area? How long do they typically maintain use?
You can actually make them yourself out of certain (I believe it's odor free, low quality stuff, google it to be sure) kitty litter and fabric pouches. This way you can make them the size you want, and they're really cheap too; a few dollars can get you pounds of desiccant.
There you go again.... Answering the questions I never knew I had. Good work guys.
Man I remember you from a video. Not trying to be a grammar nazi, but u spelled which like witch, and whether like weather, and now knew like new. I just found it kinda funny and thought pointing it out might help with possible misunderstandings
Gio Best I`m ok with my level of English. I knew the new/know thing and now I now the knew/know/now/new. :p
It can at times be a bit frustrating as my vocabulary is way better then my spelling but it does give me a chuckle now and again.
Yet, in this case. Even I can return the favor. It's 'You' and not 'u'. :p
isgdre OMG a peaceful argument on somebody's grammar on the INTERNET... what has the world come to?
I wish that this was a sign of evolution.
Graham Rich Correction, de-evolving. Peacefulness is somewhat better, but them correcting each other about grammar in the internet isn't so...great.
My grandfather insists, against all evidence to the contrary, on calling these "decassants" instead of "desiccants." He also thinks that using a leaf blower on a deck is adequately described as a "blow job." I don't have the heart to correct him on that one.
Oh, I think he knows. He is just playing with you all!
He is right and when you get to his age you will understand. :^)
Well to be fair, at his age that's probably the closest he can get to one.
seigeengine I guess you're not a grandfather or very close to someone who is. You might be surprised...
pieter zeeuwen It's called humour.
Also a lot of older men, like older women, lose their sex drive, and even can't obtain erections. That's a big part of the whole viagra thing.
Can't wait for the "silica gel challenge"
Never underestimate the power of stupidity.... or boredom
rip off comment
Any minute now.
Don't throw them away you need to save them. First dry out in a very cool oven about one 20°C for about an hour and then you put them into an airtight container. What would you do that for? For when you will inevitably drop your cell phone into water. It's really great stuff.
Good idea.
Hey that's a really great idea!
R3Testa
Sorry I meant to say 120°C it was a typo. Some of the crystals also have a color indicator to indicate how usable they are.
Poverty Gaming make sure to also pour plenty of salt in their to further the effect.
Dropping my cellphone into water? nah ive had mine for freaking ages and it hasent as much as been close to being dropped in water...
Honestly watching this made me a lot more interested in eating it then ever before. Is that weird?
Me too! Not toxic but dries out mouth -> wonder what it feels/tastes like >
I am more curious than ever to eat it as well :)
This video just gave birth to the "Silica Gel Challenge"
I'm it is because most people (myself included) assumed it was poisonous. Now we know it's not!
Yeah, you lot confuse me. I have no more desire to stick it in my mouth now than I did before. Which is to say: none.
So... how long until the desiccate challenge?
Because let's be honest, this is the internet.
Man you are so right damn scishow gave them the idea
Next it will be the ebola glass challenge, swallowing some glass gives you the same effect of hemorraghic fever, you'll have heavy internal bleeding, and you'll probably die
Amadeus von Beethoven Hahaha now that is one for the internet right there
Be the first to start it, post a video!
Hey it's 2018 and there are kids eating tidepods now
Mmm. Delicious leather purse.
You Sir/Ma'am. Are the only person to have thought what I thought, I congratulate you on this.
Trodoil akaTroy
You're wrong, I thought that too.
Tastes like Money inside
Desiccants are great for dehydrating freshly picked mushrooms without destroying the psilocybin within them, which is easily broken down by heat.
The more you know :)
Cant you use them to also dry out your marijuana if its fresh off the plant? lol
Don't dry weed it's better kinda moist
why do those packets still say "Do Not Eat" when you find them in boots or leather bags? its like, "check out my new boots. just picked them up at-..... what the hell is this thing? i better eat it"
Because in America, there are enough dumb people who would do exactly that, and then go on to sue your company for millions.
Once while eating backpacking food, my friend thought one of those was a packet of seasoning. We didn't realize he had poured it into his bowl until he started complaining about how "dry the soup was," which made absolutely no sense to us.
Unfortunately, after we discovered what he did, he made himself throw up for about an hour because he was so scared of what would happen. Too bad we didn't know that the stuff is basically harmless.
Did that just thicken it or partially dehydrate it?
Malcolm Stewart I have no idea I didn't try it, I think it just made his mouth dry, then he poured it out because it was ruined. So it probably dehydrated it.
Thus why you should always look at stuff before it ends up in your food... dry soup... lol....
Always been a fan of Michael. But it's pretty remarkable how much better he's gotten in front of the camera since the old episodes. Way to go, Mike (and all the fine folks at scishow)!
QQ: How does glow-in-the-dark paint work?
Short answer: Radiation.
Bone Alias Like from uranium and shit.
ZorroDood That would be way too much radiation, not safe at all. More like radium or something!
Massimo C Just did some searching, seems like you're right about people not using radium anymore. Is it really more dangerous than uranium though? Kind of surprises me.
Here's an article which sheds some *light* on the matter:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luminous_paint
ZorroDood I agree with this.....
Go to the bathroom and turn off the light! See your illuminated feces!
Straight to the point. I like this channel, subscribed
I feel like there is going to be someone who will still try it anyways.
Exactly
my friend Christian ate it😂
when he compared it to cinnamon challenge and said that it is worse than silicon he made a grave mistake
+Serena Aguilar it tastes like a plastic, and it dried my tongue
yeah, when he said it won't kill me, i had to tried it (didn't swallowed) :D
Ikac BMW should I ask how u know how plastic tastes?
What amazes me the most is that there are people out there who seriously needed this explained to them.
Glad to hear you were born with all the wisdom in the world, but other people still need to/want to learn. Seriously, people like you are the reason kids AND adults are afraid to ask questions. Asking shows that one is interested in the matter. Telling other people "what, you didn't already know that??" just embarrasses them and will ensure that they'll be more hesitant to ask other questions in the future. Don't be that guy who discourages other people to be curious!
Look, a keyboard warrior in it's natural habitat! Yes, there are things that I assume people with half a brain can figure out considering its written right on the packet what is inside of them. Not to mention it takes 10 times longer to submit the question to scishow than it does just to look it up on google. Chill the fuck out.
Lol you got told xD
Saki the instigater Can you imagine what it would be like dating her? "Honey where are my keys?" "On the table where you always put them.." "Oh well I'm SORRY not everyone just has a perfect memory. You think you're SO much smarter than me don't you. See this is why a lot of women don't date men. Asshole..."
Pheonix2022 common sense is not very common these days, is it? lol u won the internet. But then, i appreciate this kind of in-depth explanation for the sake of additional information.
Don't throw away the packet - keep it around, they're great for drying flowers/boutaniers/etc.
But make sure it's kept in a dry, air tight container otherwise it will adsorb water from the air until it's useless.
Also walking boot or work shoes or anything that gets wet and used a lot
It helps to have a few silica packets handy
Nolan Thiessen
You can easily dry and reuse them in that case.
I have always wondered this!!!! Thank you scishow!
I used to eat those when I was little.
?
What did I taste like? Sorry for asking but I ain't bout to become dried sponge bob.
Adsorption...
I now have a new word to impress my chemistry teacher with! 😂 🔫
"do not eat" isnt a warning, its a challenge
I think he's getting better at doing videos. Yay you!
Michael, I don't know why I noticed this just now, but you have really nice, clear pronunciation/elocution. Also, interesting video!
So those are actually used for packaged food? I always wondered why they had to mention "do not eat" on them!
(I had never seen those in food before. Only in shoes, with electronic equipment, etc...)
you see them in seaweed sheet packages. They need to be kept super dry.
Berzerius Jerky and medications use it as well.
It is a widely used technology with many applications.
Yeah. You'll find them in jerky packages and stuff.
i've seen them inside bottles of pills, not only the packet seen in the video but also embedded in the bottom of the cap.
Does anyone else want to now throw one of those packets into a cup of water just to see what happens?
Dammit I gotta find myself one of those packets now.
Yas!
Thanks for clearing this up, I've always craved eating a dry piece of cloth with pellets inside. It looks so appetizing.
The real problem with silica gel is that it's often stained with indicators that turn color when the gel has reaches saturation.
The indicators are often poisonous.
1:19
MEANWHILE AT TACO BELL
Ive eaten it as a child. I was curious because Im still alive. LOL
This was a great question!
Well done, Mr. Aranda
thanks for the new challenge idea: the silica challenge!
wouldn't that be the "silica gell-enge"?
pieter zeeuwen Stahp
I wanted to know what was inside these as a kid and, being a genius, decided to open the packet with my teeth...
It burns, if anyone wanted to know. Now you don't have to do it yourself.
I don't know what you've been eating but they shouldn't burn you mate.
while merely seeing "Do not eat" should be enough to keep people from eating it, I've always wondered what exactly was inside (some packages say "Contains Silica Gel", but that isn't enough of an answer for me), what it did, how it worked, and why. even without knowing those answers beforehand, I wouldn't have tried eating them, but always good to know to satiate curiosity
I saw your advertisement on the NYC subway, so I tuned in.
"Do not eat!!"
You have underestimate my power......
It Saids "Do Not Eat" Because If You Eat It There Is Going To Be No
Protection Of Moisture So Your Items Get Spoiled .-.
I never understood why there is a need to write on the packet, 'DO NOT EAT'. Who would be stupid enough to eat one. Oh wait........we're talking about people. Plus, I suppose someone had to have eaten one at some point for them to have put the warning on the packet. ¬_¬
It looks much like a pack of seasoning or salt that might be included in a packaged food item.
R3Testa
Yeah I know, but I've seen them in my box of sneakers, and I've never thought that my shoes need seasoning. ;P
West Kagle
Why do you comment like this?
Diego Morales
True.
MrGhillieMonster
You mean with an indent? It's just how I was taught to write. When you write something, you indent the first line of every paragraph. I guess it helps to distinguish each paragraph.
Like this. Usually the paragraphs are a little longer than 2 or 3 sentences, but for this demonstration, it will suffice. I know that often a post won't be longer that one line so it doesn't have any effect, but I never know when I start a comment if it will blossom out of my control and become a mini-novel, so I just start every post like that. 😉
You can keep a couple of those silica gels inside your car near the front windshield to keep them from fogging up! Helpful tips for roadtrips if you bring a couple bags of beef jerky along
those little do not eat packets that come in shoe boxes and purses and stuff are really handy. I always save mine. If you drop your phone in water you can put a few of those packets in a baggie with your phone and it usually dries it out after a day or 2. maybe add some rice to the bad as well. there's also a lot of other good uses for them. 😊
Challenge accepted.
"Silica Gel Challenge" born.
Thank you for inspiring me to follow up this youtube video with a search for "eating silica gel", or alternatively "silica gel challenge". :)
Damn dude! Spot on! Awesome, as a fellow fireman. You already know this. The easiest way do differ absorb and adsorb is
Absorb- think of a sponge, picking up moisture into its structure.
Adsorb- kitty litter holding the moisture on the outside of the structure. Like it soaks into the pile of kitty litter
QQ: How do striped toothpastes come out of the little hole at the top evenly and consistently striped from beginning to end when the tube is bigger than the hole and the contents have to squished to push them out?
My tooth paste doesn't do that....
the strips are acually in the end. look at it whenever you buy new toothpaste
Cut the tube in half.
the striped gods do it.
Toothpaste illuminati confirmed.
I ate 5 of these on a dare, and it was the best $1 I ever made.
I keep them because they're really handy to keep moisture out of sensitive electronics, like camera lenses, especially if you live in a humid tropical/subtropical climate like I do. I pop my lenses in sealed food containers with a couple of these packets to curb the possibility of fungus growing inside the lenses.
Silica gel packets are awesome for protecting portable electronics from moisture and water - the main example being a digital camera kept in a camera bag. You can recycle them for this purpose.
And yes, they do adsorb water very well. I inadvertently tested this while I had to ride a quad bike in a rainstorm. My Lumix LX5 survived because the silica gel packets I kept in my sopping wet camera bag expanded to almost three times their original size.
Silica Gel challenge?
I wonder how they are made and what consequences throwing them away properly/improperly has. If it's just "high-tech-sand", is it still dangerous to the environment?
lolwut
Sand isn't dangerous to the environment, and I highly doubt these are either.
Since they aren't usual sand?
Also sand is not the best to e.g. grow a garden, as it,, consisting of silicon, contains no nutrients.
Kohlenwasserstoff Wesen Actually, optimal soils for growing food are loams which do contain sand. It makes sense when you realize sand helps water drain.
And gardens and "the environment" are two different things. Nature doesn't give a shit if there's sand somewhere. That doesn't harm the environment. It may not be agreeable with YOUR designs, but since when did nature give a shit about your tomatoes either?
And I still have no idea how you've managed to come up with this stuff being harmful to the environment.
Kohlenwasserstoff Wesen yes, it contains no nutrients, no, sand won't make the plants wither unless you plant them in soil that consists mainly of sand/silica. And it being sand, it's basically chemically inert - definitely safe to "just throw away"
seigeengine Hey, calm down. I'm just curious, as they didn't mention it in the video.
So wouldn't this high-tech-sand do exactly the opposite? instead of helping the water drain, keeping it up? As it is water-adsorbing. Or would the water it keeps, even help the plants?
The garden bit was an _example_ from what I know until today. You know, they don't sell sand for planting plants,
I don't think, one of those packages will cause a lot of harm.
But if they are designed by humans, nature probably isn't used to them. Probably its microstructure is suitable habitat to different microorganisms, than usual sand.
Furthermore I'm not talking about one package. I'm talking about the giant pile of them, that probably makes up considerable parts of the landfills, since I don't think it can be burned or degraded.
I wonder - is this sand really artificial and how do they make it? If it's so special, does nature behave differently towards it? Is it degradeable or will we end up, having no "normal" sand anymore in a few thousand years?
Is there a reason, that in Germany you would only ever find it with cheap products or shoes but never with food?
Is irt really just sand and why is it always accompanied by a nasty smell of plastic?
I'm now saving these... And also, I just watched one of the videos Hank did and I realized how slow everything sounds now...
The way michael kind of bobs his head forwards at like 0:10 when saying "do not eat" is so funny to me LMAO
what perfect body language
I hate to break it to you folks over there at SciShow that the "Do Not Eat" packets usually found in packages of dried and/or cured meats are normally not desiccants but instead are oxygen scavenging packets. The combination of oxygen and time is the enemy of these types of foodstuffs due to their fat content. I mean really, who wants jerky, bacon bits, sausages, et.al. that have had the fats in them gone rancid? The oxygen scavenging packets are particularly helpful after the consumer has opened the packaging and resealed it with new, fresh air inside.
Also, in regards to desiccants and "dried" and/or cured meats, well... they would be ruined by desiccants due to too much moisture being removed causing not only an unpalatable texture, but also negatively affecting the flavor. The effect on the flavor could range from a mere attenuation from the lack of moisture to the lovely gustatory delights of rancidity due to oxidation of the fats therein.
But the ones found in the other products do contain desiccants.
Which is iron powder. Don't eat that, you'll upset the iron supplement manufacturers.
Yes good point ElbowMacaroniKP, our company manufacturers OxySorb oxygen absorbers that can be re-used as soil fertiliser;
pericles.ipaustralia.gov.au/ols/auspat/applicationDetails.do?applicationNo=2017101028
Lmao scientists think of the best challenges.
dude, even just an oz of salt will kill you. No need to drink two cups of water at once.
Diego Morales Isn't it dihydrogen monoxide? If it's what I think you're thinking of that stuff is extremely dangerous.
Matthew Arthur They are both synonyms for water. Hydrogen hydroxide = H-O-H. More colloquially known as H20 .
Malcolm Stewart You clearly can't take a joke
Matthew Arthur You didn't use the sarcasm font
The cinnamon challenge is a great point of reference.
Reminded me right of that time when I had the great idea to try a teaspoon of that stuff... x_x I quickly found out why cinnamonsugar needs so little to be nice xD
And if this stuff is so much worse, I'd think a couple of times about whenever or not it might be not the better choice to just punch curiousity in the face.
They're good to keep around for emergencies like when you get water in your cell phone. It's cleaner to use those packets instead of rice. Or you can use them both.
I feel bad about throwing anything away - can they be recycled in any way?
You could probably repurpose them to keep other things drier for a time. I think they can be reused (it's just glorified sand, not something that can spoil). If they adsorb too much moisture you can just leave them to dry for a day or so. However, the packaging would deteriorate with time. You could move the contents to another container.
Mind, I'm not sure if there are any issues with trying such a thing. Maybe someone else can confirm.
You can keep a few in the, bathroom, kitchen, closet or pantry to keep those areas dry. I've seen them used in fridges as well, but I'm not sure if that works too well.
That Sodding Gamer
You can't dry them out like that. Removing physisorbed water from silica requires heating it up to around 200°C under vacuum.
BlazeDeval
They can't possibly adsorb anything near the amounts of moisture involved in making such large volumes of air moist. I doubt the effect on an entire bathroom or kitchen is even measurable.
That Sodding Gamer The problem is that they basically want to hold onto water more than the air does, so they'll suck humidity out of the ambient air. I imagine you might be able to dry them out in extremely low humidity, but I don't know.
Whoa! It'll instantly suck all the moisture out of my mouth?! Awesome!
I swear, there's going to be some sort of "do not eat packet" challenge on the internet coming soon, because of this video.
Why do cats' eyes glow in the dark and does the cat have any control over it? Also, most cats' eyes glow white. I have a blue eyed cat that glows red. Is that normal or is she possessed? (Just kidding. )
I think it is a layer in the back of the eye that is reflective
It's a part of the back of the eye that (Don't quote me, I'm basically just regurgitating what little flecks of what I remember...) reflect light back into the eye so that it can absorb more light than usually possible. Cats and dogs both have this, and I forgot what its called, but it allows for more light to be absorbed by the eye which in tern allows the animal to see better in a dark environment. Cats and dogs can't see in total darkness because there's no light. They'd have a hard time seeing in a /very/ dark environment because there's so little light content. If that didn't answer your question proficiently, there's always Google.
I have a blue eyed cat too and her eyes glow red as well.
30 seconds on Wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapetum_lucidum
red eye is caused by reflection of light in a different angle, showing a different wavelength of color, therefore showing a different color if seen from a varied angle.
I actually have seen another kind of "do not eat" packet before. Those contained iron dust and were used to remove oxygen from a packaging. They work by consuming oxygen through the reaction of oxidation of iron to rust.
I just love the notion of someone getting a new leather purse, opening a flap and declaring in glee, "Ohh, a snack!"
In the beef jerky i bought there was another kind of bag to deal with oxygen to stop the fats in the meat from going rancid rather than protecting it from moisture, the meat was dried and packed in sealed bags anyway. I got curious and read up on it a bit. What they use is iron which oxidizes to rust, I opened a bag expecting filings, but it just looked like rust-colored dirt.
I'm really starting to love watching scishow episodes at speed x2
Omg I've Been wondering this FOREVER
I actually learned something interesting today. :)
Why do we get the chills. Vid request
Please make a informational video about lake Karachay :)
thanks for answering this I've always wondered what those were
I bet you wanted to eat it
That explains why that package was inside the beef jerky I bought.. Was kinda weird out when I saw a package like that inside food product, because I normally see soft like that inside shoes boxes.
I was literally thinking about this very question today
Please make one of how muscles work amd how they grow, I like your videos.
Thanks man
first time i ever got beef jerkey i thought the thing was a seasoning packet like the ones in ramen noodles and i mixed it in with the beef jerkey
Tasted pretty good
Can it then be used to prevent mold...moldy closet, moldy windows? Toss a bunch of those packets on the closet floor and shelf. Or along window panes?
could you please do a video on surgeries on patients cooled down to very low temperatures to slow down their bodily functions ? i've recently read about it & thought it was kind of cool & interesting & creepy at the same time
How do the gel ball packets work, the ones that cause cancer that are also sometimes used in place of the silica ones. Are they better? Or just cheaper?
*slowly chews on leather purse*
Im enjoying this greatly.
And now all the silica gel packet eating challenges begin :P
I always wondered if I should keep it in the beef jerky or shoes etc when not in use.
This is very interesting indeed
SciShow how does silica gel interact with propylene glycol to maintain ideal humidity for cigars and other items?
"cinnamon challenge would sound like a great idea in comparison"
Scishow, I accept your challenge. 1 do not eat bag for me.
What is the white powder in the packets that come with a bouquet of flowers?
Watching scishow, got a scishow ad
how does the moisture go through the plastic bag though?
I keep the one that came with the laptop I am typing this on right now in my laptop's bag to ADsorb any moisture.
I'd like to add silica gel is also really bouncy, try it
Beef jerky and the like will often contain an oxygen absorber as well (or just instead) which is usually powdered iron and salt which removes the oxygen from the air in the packet interestingly if you wet it it will get nice and warm,
I came across this because I wanted to know an answer and you answered it. But now I have another question can they be used for something else as in instead of throwing them away like do some type of experiment or mixing them with a chemical to make something or melting them down or doing something else since it is silica or a type of silica like you said?
So there are also two or three different kinds of silica gel. It's true that the ones that are white and remain white after exposure to water are non-lethal to ingest, but the ones that turn blue or yellow have special chemicals in them that are far more dangerous. I can't recall off the top of my head what the ones that turn yellow have in them, but the ones that turn blue have cobalt!
I just got an ad for SciShow on a SciShow video.
I use those silicon packs in my potting soil, when it rains they retain the extra water and if I forget to water, they save my dry plants.
Well I can see the do not eat challenge in the foreseeable future now. Cinnamon challenge round 2.
I knew they helped with moisture but I had no idea how they did it...cool :-)
Can you get the water out of the gel? and capture it?
wait so if I buy a leather purse or medicine bottle that has the do not eat thingy inside of it should I be leaving it in there?
Does rice work the same way? I know that there is rice in salt shakers at some restaurants to keep the salt dry and putting a submerged phone in a bowl of rice over night is supposed to help dry it out.
I have found silica gel in a case full of things that might be even less advisable to eat, because they form a choking hazard: poker chips, playing cards, dice and a dealer button
The Silica challenge! :D