Famous Actor Making Drinks from Accumulated Snow... How Is Their Health?

Reese Witherspoon Reveals Snow-Based Drink Recipe
"Seems Unhealthy" vs "Sweet Recipe" Sparks Debate

Hollywood actress Reese Witherspoon, known for her roles in 'Legally Blonde' and 'Everything You've Got,' has sparked attention by sharing a recipe for a drink made by melting snow piled up in her yard. This has led to a debate among netizens about whether consuming snow is safe.

Hollywood actress Reese Witherspoon making a drink with her eyes.
[Photo by Reese Witherspoon TikTok capture]

On the 22nd (local time), major foreign media reported that Witherspoon recently posted a video on her social media account titled "Snowy days are for drinking chocochino (chocolate + cappuccino)." In the video, Witherspoon scoops snow piled on the outdoor grill at her home in Nashville into a cup, adds chocolate syrup, caramel, and coffee, and says, "It's a really delicious drink."

Netizens who saw the video responded negatively, saying things like "Eating snow is not good for your health," "Snow is as harmful to the body as acid rain," "I don't understand why anyone would eat that," and "I'm disappointed that a highly influential actress is sharing an unhealthy recipe."

On the other hand, some netizens reacted with comments such as "Eating food is a personal choice," "Thanks for sharing a sweet recipe," and "I want to try making it too."

Hollywood actress Reese Witherspoon is seen claiming that eating snow falling from the sky is not a problem.
[Photo by Reese Witherspoon TikTok screenshot]

As the controversy grew on social media, Witherspoon posted an additional video defending that eating snow is not problematic. She showed snow melted cleanly in a microwave without impurities, arguing that consuming snow poses no health issues.

Snow from the sky is safe to consume if the 'expiration date' is observed

Image unrelated to the article content.
Photo by Getty Images

So, is consuming snow really safe for health? Previously, Professor Istvan Mad of the University of Sofia Hungarian presented research results on whether eating snow is safe. He said, "It's okay to eat snow, but it should be snow that has fallen within half a day," and advised against eating snow that is more than two days old.

The study was conducted based on snow collected from parks and intersections in Miercurea Ciuc, Romania, during January and February 2017. The research team placed the collected snow in sterilized containers to culture mold and bacteria. In January, five bacteria per millimeter were found after one day, and in February, the bacteria count increased fourfold.

Professor Istvan Mad said, "Fresh snow contains almost no bacteria," but added, "The reason the number increases to dozens after two days is because the air is not clean. Eating a small amount of snow does not adversely affect health, but I do not want to recommend eating snow."