A year ago my son came home from school and starting cleaning his nose with his finger, but instead of grabbing a piece of paper or smearing it off somewhere he ate the little bugger...and I screamed "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!"...
Anyway I asked why all of a sudden he started with this disgusting behavior and he said everybody else in school is doing it...
So after this "disgusting event" I started to observe a little, especially in the trains, trams and in traffic queues...and to my surprise, I actually start seeing a lot of people...(old/young, men/women etc) were eating...SNOT! Even at work...it's like a curse, "everywhere" I look where people are picking their nose they end up eating it...
And it's not only me, since I told my wife, she has also made this observation...
Now, personally for me I find it really disgusting...
Has anyone else made this experience? Or is it just me who finds this behavior disgusting? Where I come from this is really a NO GO...faux pax...
How is snot eating looked up on here in Switzerland? How is it in e.g. UK?
I would understand if children are doing it, my observation during this year, is that mostly adults are doing it...and a lot...they don't even hide it...
When I was 7 years old, I remember feeling exactly like your son. Everyone was doing it and I felt left out. I was just too grossed out to try. Same as eating dirt and grass (regular grass.. what cows chomp ), I never caught on to that too. I was not a very cool kid.
Oh and I've never seen an adult do it.. Thank heavens! That's just nasty!
I've known someone who, even as an adult, during moments of boredom, would pick and wipe it on the nearest surface. Imagine going to visit this person's house and finding "deposits" on the wall next to the toilet.
To this day I wonder why that person didn't simply use the tissue that was right there (!!!) and trash it...
So, with that in mind, as gross as I think it is, I'd rather it was gotten rid of in whichever manner rather than left for me to find later.
Obviously your son's teacher hasn't got the book "No Bertie" that's dirty Bertie. My kids love the nasty books when other kid's are being naughty or a bit "grussig". Anyway I've found people in cars think they are in a personal bubble and get up to all sorts of adult "grussig", sometimes I wave and put up my thumb, it's wonderful to see how confused they get.
I've found looking away when people are having a private moment in public, helps.
How is eating snot different from clearing your throat and swallowing the same stuff ? Not trying to condone it but the act obviously makes a lesser contribution to spreading germs in the environment v/s through discarded tissues filled with the stuff ?
Surely sucking the stuff off of ones finger is more germified than blowing it into a tissue? I mean not only would one have micro particles of it left on the finger but also throw some gob (actually rife with nasties) into the mix.