Read on to learn the most common ingredients in incense and what happens if you eat them. <\/p>\n\n\n
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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nCan You Eat Incense?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s best not to eat incense. The main ingredients in most incense will not harm you. However, without ingredient lists on the labels, it\u2019s impossible to know for sure what\u2019s inside and whether it\u2019s safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most common ingredients in many incense sticks and cones are all well-known and edible. However, many come with possible side effects that are unpleasant or even dangerous. There\u2019s always the chance that you could react negatively to one of the ingredients, it could contain dangerous ingredients, or that the ingredients may interact with your medication. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s certain that you should never eat joss papers because the heavy metals in them are highly toxic and possibly lethal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, if you eat incense, you are taking an unnecessary health or life risk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ingredients in Incense<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Incense has two parts<\/a>: the combustible binding materials that ignite and burn to produce smoke and the aromatic ingredients that provide a pleasant scent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While the actual ingredients in incense are proprietary secrets, most incense is a combination of fragrant gums and resins, wood powders, spices, and herbs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The combustible ingredients vary depending on whether your incense is a coil, cone, powder, or stick. Common combustible ingredients include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The typical composition<\/a> of a wooden incense stick is 35% fragrance, 33% wood (often bamboo), 21% herbal and wood powder, and 11% adhesive powder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Bark from the Chinese coffin tree is the typical ingredient for incense stick adhesive. Luckily, the tree gets its name from its popularity in China for coffins rather than from being toxic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The aromatic ingredients in incense vary depending on the specific scent profile. The most-used ones are spices and herbs or components of traditional medicines. So, they\u2019re edible. However, consuming some of them may result in negative side effects in some cases:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since most incense contains wood, wood powder, or both, you may be curious about what happens if you eat wood. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Humans produce enzymes called amylases to break down starches into glucose that we can use for energy. However, humans don\u2019t have the correct enzymes<\/a> to break down the cellulose in wood. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Termites have bacteria and protozoa in their intestines that make the enzymes necessary for them to digest wood. However, humans don\u2019t harbor these same bacteria and protozoa in our guts to help us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, what happens if you eat the wood in an incense stick? Even if you are consuming ground wood (like the adhesive in an incense stick), it will pass through you undigested. It may be beneficial as fibrous roughage. However, if you were eating incense in hopes of gaining nutritional value or energy, you\u2019re out of luck. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re interested in the safety of eating a charcoal incense cone, you will want to consider what happens to your body<\/a> when you eat charcoal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Charcoal has been used in traditional medicines since ancient times. It\u2019s even used as an emergency poison treatment since it can bind to many types of drugs to reduce their effects. Studies show that it stops the body from absorbing the drug and helps eliminate the drug more quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, it\u2019s possible that eating a charcoal incense cone could help eliminate some of the side effects that could possibly occur from consuming the aroma-producing agents in incense. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While eating charcoal is generally safe, it may result in vomiting. And in rare cases, it has caused bowel blockages (usually in people with gut motility disorders). <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Are the Aromatic Ingredients in Incense Edible?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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What Happens If You Eat Wood?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What Happens If You Eat Charcoal?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Dangers of Eating Joss Papers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n