Is It Safe to Do That? Here’s What Each State Is Curious About

Let’s be honest; for most of us, Google is the first place we go when we have a question about anything. Whether you’re worried about if it’s safe to take a shower during a thunderstorm or wondering if you should keep your Facebook profile, Google has an answer.

Those curiosities get even more curious when you look at them by state. Is it safe to eat lettuce yet? Is it chill to eat snow? What about gum—is it cool to chew and swallow it? (It’s either that or spit it into a crumpled receipt like the rest of us.)

Every state has its most-asked questions, and the internet always has an answer. Whether that answer is right or not, well, that’s a matter for another day.

Here are some of the most-googled concerns by state, from the serious to the silly.

Interesting findings

Some of the questions asked by certain states are pretty entertaining. Arizonans and Minnesotans are curious about whether it’s safe to shower in a thunderstorm. The good citizens of North Carolina are wondering whether or not it’s cool to eat snow. And the people of Michigan must be swiping right: they want to know whether it’s safe to date.

Here are some more notable results.

Is it safe to eat romaine lettuce?

2018’s multistate E. coli outbreak gave romaine a bad name. So much so that seven states—Connecticut, Idaho, Montana, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin—are understandably concerned about whether the vegetable is safe to eat again. (It is, as of January 9.)

Is it safe to do a liquid diet?

Six states want to know whether the juice cleanse is worth it: Alaska, Delaware, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska, and North Dakota are all asking if it’s safe to do a liquid diet.

Is it safe to use Facebook? Do Keto? Take melatonin?

After last year’s major data breach, Alabama, Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Virginia are taking to Google to find out whether they can trust Facebook.

Meanwhile, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, and Louisiana are looking to get into a healthier lifestyle and want to know if the low-carb, high-fat Keto diet is safe.

And the people of Kentucky, Oklahoma, Utah, and West Virginia are just exhausted, frankly: those states are googling whether it’s safe to take melatonin.

See what safety question your state is googling most

Conclusion

It’s interesting that a lot of states have the same concern—whether it’s safe to take melatonin, eat snow or lettuce, or vape—while some states have area-specific concerns. Texans are concerned about the safety of El Paso. New Yorkers are worried about the safety of using Airbnb.

For the most part, though, it looks like we all worry about a lot of the same things. Good thing we can always ask Google.