Can you eat wood?

No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world – 106 points – 12 months ago

I'm trying to resolve an argument.

EDIT: Yes, you can. But you can't digest it. The only edible parts of a tree are some specific types of tree bark. Thanks, everyone!

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I just got started testing Google Bard, so I fed this question to it and got this reply:

No, humans cannot eat wood. Wood is made of cellulose, which is a type of fiber that is not digestible by humans. If you eat wood, it will pass through your digestive system without being absorbed. In some cases, eating wood can cause blockages in the digestive tract, which can be dangerous.

There are some animals that can eat wood, such as termites and beavers. These animals have special enzymes that help them to digest cellulose. Humans do not have these enzymes, so we cannot eat wood without getting sick.

So what you are saying is, we just need to put wood and beaver enzymes in a blender...

Bard says "we" cannot eat wood.. OK Bard, then try a Cheeseburger.

What about those dried wood snacks?

dried wood snacks?

I have never heard of this and I can't find anything online.

Got a link?

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/oak-bark

Ohh, so it seems like bark is edible but wood isn't. Definitely chimes with other answers above.

I think our dude's been eating potpouri.

Bard is wrong. Look at any vitamin/supplement type pill bottle. Cellulose is listed in almost every one.

I looked up cellulose and it does say that it is used in some drugs and other consumables yeah, but it's still indigestible, so it wouldn't give you any nutrients to survive if eaten by itself, I guess.