That’s what microbiologist Christina Agapakis, PhD, discovered when she started making cheese from human body bacteria back in 2010, as part of an art-meets-science exhibition called Selfmade. Inspired by the complex interdependence between humans and bacteria, Agapakis took samples from the feet, armpits, and belly buttons of volunteers—even food writer Michael Pollan donated a swab of his microorganisms—and used them to craft a variety of pungent cheeses. Earlier this year, another intrepid scientist took the torch of human-made dairy: Cecilia Westbrook, a MD/PhD student at the University of Wisconsin, figured out how to use her own vaginal bacteria to make yogurt, which she ate with blueberries, according to Vice. Disgusting, you might be thinking. I’d never eat that. But let’s lay down some real talk: If you’re reading this website, you’re probably into the idea of eating only all-natural food. Hell, you’ve probably turned down a slice of grandma’s birthday cake because the frosting came from a can or the sprinkles had Red #40. So what could possibly be more all-natural than dairy fermented by your own skin bacteria? MORE: The Best Fake Packaged Cheeses Ranked Nothing. In fact, bacteria used in cheese making, like lactobacillus, are exactly the same or extremely similar to the bacteria on and in our bodies, Agapakis says. The real reason we might instinctually recoil is disgust has more to do with society than the taste of our own microorganisms. “It’s about boundaries,” Agapakis explains. “Crossing that boundary between food and feet elicits this kind of gross-out response. But bacteria is bacteria, no matter where it comes from.” As we learn more about the huge influence of bacteria on our health—there are 10 times more bacterial organisms living in and on you than there are cells in your body—the line between Get me a bucket and Woah, that’s cool! grows ever more blurry: Would you eat your own bacteria if it helped overhaul your health? While the cheese in Agapakis’ experiment wasn’t for eating—it was “cheese for thinking,” as she told reporters—it can help us recognize that, like it or not, we’re covered with bugs. And we might as well use them to our advantage. MORE: Should You Ditch Greek Yogurt for Quark? A few times during the project, Agapakis even made cheese out of her own bacteria, which she did taste. The verdict, in her words: “It just tastes like normal cheese.” And it was 100% natural.
