Romanian Study Reveals Exactly How Long You Can Eat Snow Before It Goes Bad

And now this, in things you don’t need to know, but why not: A Romanian study has found that it’s safe to eat half-day-old snow. I guess you’ll keep that info in your back pocket just in case Seamless goes down during the next bomb cyclone.

Anyway, the study also says it’s safer to eat it during the colder months, but two-day-old snow is a big no-no, as Istvan Mathe, a professor at the Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, told the Associated Press. The professor says he got the idea for the study when he saw his kids eating snow. I’d love to get this dude’s take on Tide Pods.

Anyway, scientists came to this oddly specific conclusion by testing the snow from a park and a roundabout in Miercurea Ciuc, central Romania. They then collected the white stuff and placed it in hermetically-sealed sterile containers, before attempting to grow mold and bacteria in them. Ew.

The study, which included snow samples from January and February, took place in one of the coldest Romanian cities. “Very fresh snow has very little bacteria,” said Mathe. “After two days, however, there are dozens of bacteria.” Good to know. I’m no scientist, but this tells me even the freshest of snow in NYC may not be so fresh. Mathe also makes it clear that he’s “not recommending anyone eats snow. Just saying you won't get ill if you eat a bit.” So in the event of a zombie apocalypse, here’s hoping there’s snow on the ground.