In this short article, we will answer the question “What is edible chalk?” and discuss the internet trend of eating chalk.
Everyone who enjoys using Instagram has probably seen an ASMR video. even without being aware.
You may be familiar with ASMR videos, for instance, when performers cut soap, touch objects with their fingertips, or speak softly while their mouths are virtually stuck to the microphone.
More generally, ASMR posts seek to elicit an autonomic sensory meridian response, which can feel like a tickling sensation brought on by specific sounds or sensory stimulation.
The group is enormous, with more than 5.3 million Instagram posts currently using the hashtag “ASMR” (the genre is also immensely popular on YouTube). You’ve probably never seen an ASMR video of someone eating chalk, although there are some of them.
That’s accurate. People have been seen on camera biting, chewing, and occasionally swallowing chalk.
What is edible chalk?
Natural chalk is referred to as “edible chalk” and is eaten in some nations, including Russia and the Ukraine. Lovers of edible chalk or clay-like its “chalky” flavour. Depending on the type, some chalks are creamy, some are earthy, and some are dry and gritty.
Why are so many Instagram users eating chalk?
because it’s fashionable. The majority of the time, they consume edible chalk, but occasionally, misinformed individuals may use regular chalk, which can be quite hazardous.
The majority of the ladies who create this clip write the subtitles in Russian, although women from all over the world share films of themselves swallowing and chewing chalk.
And the genre is not small. Currently, there are over 71,000 posts on Instagram with the hashtag #chalkeating and over 34,000 posts with #chalkasmr.
According to popular belief, the majority of “eating chalk” films feature edible chalk, whereas those who use non-edible chalk don’t truly consume it.
Almost no one swallows chalk or clay when they chew it because it can create digestive issues. Unfortunately, there are some instances where it does. Some forms of clay are even edible, but this is uncommon in the neighbourhood.
However, it just takes a few chance glances to discover that people are in fact eating chalk.
Is normal chalk (non-edible) dangerous for you to eat?
Yes, that is truly awful. Let’s be clear about one thing: eating chalk is not advised from a medical standpoint. Abdominal pain, diarrhoea, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, and coughing can all result from swallowing a lot of chalk.
Since chalk is non-toxic but nonetheless dangerous, eating it won’t kill you. But to claim that the chalk-eating videos are just an instance of the ASMR subgenre going too far and hurting people would be oversimplifying things.
There is a medical issue that helps to explain some of what may be happening:
According to the US National Library of Medicine, someone who experiences the impulse to consume objects that are not considered “food” for more than a month has been diagnosed with pica syndrome.
This can be anything you can think of, including chalk, clay, sand, mud, glue, paper, etc. The prevalence of the syndrome is unknown in adults and teenagers, but it is frequent in youngsters.
Pica is categorised as an eating disorder since it can be exacerbated or induced by mental illnesses including stress, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or autism. But iron or zinc deficiency, pregnancy, or other conditions can also contribute to pica.
However, not everyone in the neighbourhood has pica. In fact, despite the fact that ASMR has an overall “addictive” quality and that seeing someone eat chalk triggers ASMR, even though the person with pica despises eating chalk.
The tradition of eating chalk predates the internet, as periodically noted in posts and comments in the Instagram community.
In Georgia, and Eastern Europe, eating chalk is a common practice, although some academics have hypothesised that the practice is actually a sign of a widespread disease called pica.
Other chalk eaters think the practice has a “detox” impact on the body. Indeed, some Etsy vendors profit from this myth by marketing chalk as “edible” under the hashtag “detox.”
However, eating chalk has already been shown to have no positive effects on health, and “detox” was originally referred to as a “nonsense” medical phrase.
Even still, there are 491 “edible chalk” advertisements available right now on Etsy. It’s also important to note that a subculture has naturally developed as a result of the hundreds of people who share films of themselves eating chalk.
The ASMR community of chalk eaters is particularly close-knit and supportive of one another. Even though eating chalk is bad for you, you should keep in mind that people post unique or strange things online for a reason. And assistance is offered if you require it.
Conclusion:
In this short article, we answered the question “What is edible chalk?” and discussed the internet trend of eating chalk.