How to Eat a Tic Tac

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: May 6, 2021 References

Think eating Tic Tacs is easy? Think again. It seems many people eat Tic Tacs wrong. In fact, there are Internet memes devoted to that theory. Here’s how to eat the small oval breath mints the “right way.”

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Removing a Single Tic Tac

1
Remove a single Tic Tac from the plastic box at one time. The correct way to eat Tic Tacs is to dispense with the small breath mints one-by-one.
- The wrong way to eat Tic Tacs is to try to shake a bunch of them in your hand at once. Often, the latter method results in the small mints landing on the floor. You never know how many you will get.
- It turns out that Tic Tacs come with a compartment design that allows you to rather precisely remove them one by one. Who knew?
2
Turn the Tic Tac case upside down. Many people make the mistake of shaking the Tic Tac box right side up and then trying to shake them into their hand. Instead, turn the plastic case upside down to start the process.
- Don't worry if you've been using the shake-it-into-the-hand method for years.^{[1]
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  Research source} This method has earned the scorn of Internet meme writers, who acknowledge that lots of us have been doing it that way for a very long time. So you're not alone. “I’ve been eating Tic Tacs wrong FOR YEARS,” reads one.^{[2]
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- The ability to extract a single Tic Tac from the container is attributed to the oval-shaped compartment that is located under a Tic Tac container flap. Open it up and check it out before you proceed.^{[3]
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Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Removing a Tic Tac

1
Shake the Tic Tacs so they fall to the bottom of the compartment. Once you’ve turned the box upside down, perform this maneuver. This will leave a space at the top of the upside down box.^{[4]
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- Now, grab the compartment lip and then pull the box back.
- No one knows for sure if the makers designed the box this way for this reason, however, the crater inside of the lip works to push out a single Tic Tac.^{[5]
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- Flip open the lid slowly. There should be a Tic Tac on it. The single Tic Tac should be sitting in the oval-shaped contained on the Tic Tac lid.^{[7]
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2
Leave the Tic Tac on your tongue. Don't think you need to chew Tic Tacs. They are breath mints, not candy (although some people regard them as such).
- Thus, you should let the Tic Tac linger on your tongue a bit because this should freshen your breath.
- Let the Tic Tac dissolve in your mouth.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Learning All About Tic Tacs

1
Learn interesting facts about Tic Tacs. There are a lot of other things you might not know about Tic Tacs. For example, they each contain under two calories.^{[8]
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- They are available for purchase in 100 countries, and they were invented in 1969 by an Italian company. In the beginning, though, they were called “refreshing mints.” Tic Tac recently enlarged the size of its box.
- They used to come in grape flavor, but they don’t anymore. In some countries, people can only buy white Tic Tacs. On the other hand, the only place you can get cardamom Tic Tacs is in India. Tic Tacs come in many flavors, including orange, mint, and cherry.

Community Q&A

Question

Can I recycle the Tic Tac package?

Community Answer

Yes. It's made of polypropylene, a flexible plastic that is recyclable.
Question

How many tic tacs can I consume daily?

Community Answer

Usually as many as you want, just don't eat more than two boxes. It won't make you sick, but that's unhealthy!
Question

If I swallow tic tac, what will happen?

WarriorCat20

Community Answer

Nothing. You are completely safe if one gets swallowed.