Viral Now: Reese Witherspoon Criticised For Making Drink With Snow, Defends Decision

A few days ago, an Instagram reel showing a man making a dessert named "snowcream" took the internet by storm. In the viral video, he is seen taking freshly scooped snow outside his house and mixing it with sugar, evaporated milk and vanilla essence. Instagram users had mixed reactions to the idea (read full story here). Recently, famous Hollywood star Reese Witherspoon has also shared a similar video, fuelling heated debates online. In the video, Reese can be heard explaining the basic steps of her recipe. Two mugs are filled with snow from outside her home. They are topped with salted caramel syrup, chocolate syrup and cold brew.

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Reese can be seen tasting this drink and gushing, "So good!" She tries to come up with a unique name for it, finally settling on "snow salt chococinno". Take a look at the video below:

Reese's video has sparked a range of reactions online. Some have found the idea unproblematic and have even shared their own experiences of eating snow. Others have criticised her for consuming an ingredient that they believe is unhealthy. Reese has since spoken out in defence of having snow. In a series of clips, she states, "There's so many people on here saying snow is dirty so we went and took snow from the backyard and we microwaved it and it's clear. "Is this bad? Am I not supposed to eat snow?" She also added, "Okay so we're kind of in a category of, 'You only live once' and it snows maybe once a year here. I don't know! Also, I want to say something. It was delicious. It was so good." She has also spoken about how, growing up, she never drank filtered water. Instead, she would have water directly from the tap or hose.

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What do experts say? Research shows that snow may contain different pollutants absorbed from the atmosphere, especially in urban areas. However, in other regions, the level of contamination may vary according to other factors. In these places, freshly fallen snow, in limited quantities, may be relatively safe to consume. But it is advisable to wait until snow has been falling for a few hours before collecting it. Experts warn against having snow that has been ploughed or has come into contact with other tools. Steer clear from snow with a yellowish tinge too.

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