What Happens if You Eat Thermal Paste?

“Eating thermal paste” — that doesn’t sound like something you would do intentionally, does it? But in fact, people actually end up with thermal paste in their bellies sometimes. While we don’t recommend trying out this experiment (even in the name of science!), it’s important to know what could possibly happen if you, somehow, end up eating thermal paste.

In this article, we explore this subject in detail and figure out the potential outcomes of eating thermal paste. But first, let’s guide you through a few scenarios where you could accidentally eat up a bit of thermal paste.

When will you eat thermal paste accidentally?

Let’s face it, no one purposefully grabs a thermal paste tube and eats the substance. But accidents do happen, and people have accidentally eaten up the thermal paste in the past.

For instance, if you’re fond of biting your fingernails, you might accidentally eat up thermal paste after you apply it to your computer and not wash your hands afterward. A tiny bit of thermal paste, which in most cases is stuck inside fingernails, could end up in your mouth. Furthermore, if you apply thermal paste, don’t wash your hands thoroughly, and grab a meal right after, it might end up in your mouth, and then into the belly.

All in all, most of the thermal-paste-eating happens when you don’t wash your hands carefully after working with thermal paste, and proceed to insert your finger into the mouth.

Is thermal paste toxic?

Simply put, thermal paste is not that toxic to cause any harm to humans.

The thermal paste contains metal oxides for the conduction of heat. If you consume large amounts of these oxides, they can cause some harm to your body. However, the amount you'd need to get sick is much, much higher than what you'd find in a full tube of thermal paste. In short, nothing dangerous will happen if you unintentionally eat a small amount of thermal paste.

There are other, more toxic heavy metals used in the construction of other computer components. For example, lead is found in the circuit boards, and metal plates may contain chromium — both of which are really toxic to the human body. Luckily, thermal paste doesn’t contain any of those highly toxic heavy metals. (Learn more about Is thermal paste toxic?)

Should I be worried about eating thermal paste?

So, you’ve accidentally eaten up a bit of thermal paste and now you’re wondering whether to worry about your life.

The simple answer is: no, you don’t have to worry about getting poisoned by eating a bit of thermal paste. If you’ve accidentally consumed thermal paste, possibly because a bit of it was left on your fingers, you don’t have to do anything about it; just relax. There’s no feasible way to “accidentally” consume enough thermal paste to damage your internals. Although each brand of the thermal paste may have its slightly unique composition, there are no recorded cases of thermal paste being lethal.

We highly recommend you don’t go out there trying it out. Your body isn’t something you should experiment on; you shouldn’t eat substances you’re not meant to eat. However, there’s no shame in asking for help. If you have, for some reason, eaten up a large amount of thermal paste and aren’t feeling well, you should get in touch with your doctor. For small amounts of thermal paste, however, there are no chances for you to get sick.

How to clean thermal paste on hands?

If you didn’t follow the instructions and have got thermal paste sticking to your hands, you need to ensure you take it off completely. However, sometimes it doesn’t come off that easily after it becomes sticky.

The first thing to try is, of course, washing with soap. If the paste doesn’t look like it’s coming off, try toothpaste. Toothpaste has minor abrasive materials inside, which are effective against rubbing off sticky stains. While you’re at it, using laundry detergent is also an effective alternative. However, if you want to be sure that you’re doing it the right way, you could use one of those special soaps that claim to rub off the thermal paste. One of those products you could try is the Grip Clean soap.

Regardless, the best way to keep unexpected spots of the thermal paste off your hands and CPU, is to use Kooling Monster KLEAN-01 Thermal Paste Cleaner. This uniquely curated remover completely wipes thermal paste off of any surface you use it on.

How to prevent eating thermal paste right from the beginning?

Prevention is better than cure. So, keeping thermal paste off your hands is better than trying to clean it off later on. The best way to do that is to wear protective gloves while working with thermal paste. Luckily, if you buy our thermal paste, the KOLD-01 package, you get a pair of free gloves. So, you don’t have to go hunting for your old pair of protective gloves in your basement.

The included gloves aren’t the only good thing about KOLD-01 though. This high-performance thermal paste is made of a unique formation that comes with just the right balance between ease of use and performance. KOLD-01 will empower the best possible heat conduction from the CPU to the heatsink, making sure your computer runs at peak performance for longer sessions without overheating.

The bottom line

Although thermal paste contains slightly toxic metal oxides, the quantity is so small that it won’t have an adverse effect on your health. Even an entire tube of the thermal paste doesn’t have enough toxicity to harm you in any way. However, if you have consumed thermal paste and aren’t feeling well, going to your doctor is the first thing you must do.

In the end, we recommend wearing protective gloves to protect your hands from thermal paste beforehand. If you’re using Kooling Monster’s KOLD-01 Thermal Paste, you can use the pair of safety gloves that come inside the package.