When You Eat Raw Cookie Dough, This Is What Happens To Your Body

You've probably heard that you shouldn't consume raw cookie dough. Not everyone thinks it's harmful, though, since there are many who regularly eat and enjoy it. The simple truth is that, for some, raw cookie dough is a culinary delight. As Kelly Fields, author of "The Good Book of Southern Baking," shares with Food & Wine, "It's always been my favorite part of making cookies. Still, to this day, I have a nugget of cookie dough almost every day that I'm at work. I can't walk past it without grabbing some."

It's a sentiment shared by millions who can't resist its taste and texture. Hints of butter mingle with gritty sugar — and that, coupled with the memory of licking the beaters as a child while the aroma of mom's freshly baked cookies wafted through the kitchen, could be enough to tip the scales in raw cookie dough's advantage. However, there's one big disadvantage to consuming this smooth and velvety indulgence: It's not safe.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warns that eating dough that isn't properly cooked could be harmful to health. So why do people continue to eat it? A part of it is simply good old nostalgia, says "Supermarket Guru" Phil Lempert to The New York Times. "It brings us back to a moment when we felt safe and really good." If you're among the many who can't get enough of this famous comfort food, it's important to be aware of the risks associated with consumption.

The primary reason to avoid eating raw cookie dough is because it can put you at considerable risk of exposure to Salmonella, the bacteria responsible for symptoms like cramping, diarrhea, nausea, and fever. The bacteria comes from the raw eggs used to prepare the batter. However, salmonella can only die off when it's properly cooked.

Consuming the batter raw means you're consuming uncooked eggs, which means you may be unknowingly ingesting the damaging bacteria. Once that happens, symptoms can take anywhere from six hours to six days to develop (per Mayo Clinic). Though the symptoms mimic stomach flu and the infection doesn't always require hospitalization, there may be instances when a person needs more intensive medical attention. That's especially true among infants, the elderly, and anyone with a compromised immune system. Always see a doctor if the symptoms don't abate within several days, or if you develop bloody stool or experience a spike in temperature that doesn't go down.

And remember that just because you've eaten raw cookie dough before without trouble doesn't mean the same will always be true. Dr. Karen Neil, a medical epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division of Foodborne, Waterborne and Environmental Diseases, tells the Chattanooga Times Free Press, "The fact that you ate raw cookie dough or something else containing raw eggs without getting sick in the past does not mean that you are immune to getting sick in the future."

Just as harmful as the eggs in raw cookie dough is the raw flour, which may contain harmful E. coli bacteria. Dr. Leslie Smooth, of the Office of Food Safety at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), explains to News24, "Flour is derived from a grain which comes directly from the field and typically is not treated to kill bacteria." Any type of animal waste could remain on the flour as a result, dramatically increasing your risk of illness if consumed.

E. coli can cause many distressing gastrointestinal symptoms, including cramping, diarrhea, vomiting, and exhaustion. As with salmonella, one very key step is vital to making flour safe to consume. "Flour is one of the main components of cookie dough, and a lot of the time people don't think flour can be harmful, but it can contain bacteria because it's not heated when it's processed," says registered dietitian Beth Czerwony, RD, of the Cleveland Clinic, to Everyday Health.

Per the CDC, only cooking and baking can kill the germs. Czerwony explains that the process matters. "We need to heat it to at least 140 degrees F to kill any bacteria." What's more, ingredients in the vicinity of the flour may become contaminated, which is why it's important to keep ingredients separate during cooking.

While the symptoms of E. coli will typically clear up within 10 days, that's not always the case. Occasionally, this form of food poisoning can linger and cause a kidney ailment known as hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). The condition causes inflammation of small blood vessels, which in turn leads to potentially kidney-damaging clot formation. Though it can affect anyone, HUS is more likely to affect kids and people with weakened immune systems.

Symptoms are primarily gastrointestinal, such as bloody diarrhea, bloating, and vomiting. It can also cause fever and, as it worsens, may lead to anemia that causes significant lethargy. With the kidney damage come symptoms like exhaustion, pallor, confusion, water retention (especially in the lower legs, feet, and ankles), and a decrease in urination. Doctors will assess blood, stool, and urine to diagnose HUS, then begin treatment.

Anemic patients may require a blood transfusion. Kidney function and red blood cell production go hand in hand. As the kidneys worsen, they can't produce enough erythropoietin, which is the vital hormone responsible for red blood cell generation. The key is to slow the progression of the disease, which may involve taking medication to manage blood pressure, dialysis to help filter waste from the bloodstream, or, in rarer cases, a kidney transplant.

There's more to salmonella than the obvious gastrointestinal distress. Some people develop a more severe response to the bacteria that causes long-lasting diarrhea. This can lead to the loss of vital fluids, which in turn can cause dehydration. Unfortunately, this can lead to serious complications for some, especially those whose immune systems are already weakened, as well as kids and the elderly.

Mayo Clinic family medicine physician, Dr. Summer Allen, MD, shares, "If someone feels they're dehydrated, severely unable to keep fluids down, and they need to seek medical attention or have a condition that compromises their immune system, then they may need antibiotics." The key to avoiding this, according to Dr. Donald Ford, MD, MBA, a family medicine doctor at the Cleveland Clinic, is persistence. "When your body is trying to get rid of what's in there, it's going to throw out the good with the bad. It's pushing out a lot of fluid along with the toxins that are making you ill. You have to be super aggressive about replacing them."

Replenishing with fluids may not be enough if the dehydration causes symptoms like excessive drowsiness or difficulty speaking, adds Dr. Ford. In these cases, a doctor may need to administer intravenous fluids. 

The timeline that your symptoms present may not exactly line up with the day you consumed the raw cookie dough. In some cases, gastrointestinal distress may show up days after you licked the spoon. Once they do develop, it's possible that those unwelcome side effects could affect you for up to a week, which in turn could leave you at greater risk of exhaustion and dehydration.

There's also the sheer inconvenience involved in getting sick when you might be baking cookies for a special occasion, like an upcoming holiday. If your raw cookie dough consumption happens to collide with Valentine's Day, Christmas, or a birthday, for example, you might find yourself so set back that you can't take part in the festivities.

Dr. Soohyoun Ahn, PhD, tells Everyday Health that it's important to make smart choices across the board when potentially harmful raw ingredients are involved. "This is not just about cookie dough. The same risk applies to brownie and cake batter or any other dough that uses similar ingredients." The bottom line is to make safe choices in the kitchen — and to always be certain that eggs and flour are cooked prior to consumption.

Armed with this information, you may wonder how exactly you're supposed to avoid raw cookie dough at all costs if you've enjoyed it in the past without issue. There's no denying that the unbaked good is popular, which is why many food manufacturers have developed entirely safe versions of the treat that take all of the safety issues out of the equation. 

Many types of pre-packaged cookie dough are labeled "safe to eat raw" or "edible" because they are made with ingredients like pasteurized eggs and heat-treated flour. It's important to note that the brands that carry these products, like Pillsbury and Nestle, also manufacture other products that are not heat-treated and that contain raw eggs. Always look for a label or other indication that confirms the product is safe to consume straight out of the packaging.

Finally, if you enjoy eating cookie dough ice cream, you can continue to indulge without worry. A spokesperson for Ben & Jerry's explains to People that their cookie dough supplier uses only "heat-treated flour in the production of our cookie dough therefore there is no bacterial contamination."