String cheese. A light snack high in protein and calcium. We’ve been taught from a young age to peel it from top to bottom. What if I told you that isn’t the best way to eat it? What if I said, “Bite it.”

Although the name implies that peeling the cheese into strings is the correct method of consumption, biting from the top is actually a much more convenient and satisfying experience.

A cheese stick should have a mild mozzarella taste with a pinch of saltiness. Long, thin strands of cheese instead of a thick piece can make you focus more on how to fit that thing in your mouth. The rich flavor of a full bite of mozzarella is unmatched, and a long and inconvenient strand will only distract from the actual taste of the cheese.

Peeling string cheese may be slightly more enjoyable than biting, but the efficiency in biting is much greater. In a classroom, stealth eating may be the only option if a teacher doesn’t allow food. Peeling the cheese stick is much slower and extends the risk of being caught. Also, trying to peel a cheese stick quickly can get messy. Small strands of mozzarella can fall on the floor and attract unwanted guests like mice or ants.

Outside of the classroom, the cafeteria is another popular spot to eat a cheese stick. With only 25 minutes to eat lunch, balancing socializing and eating can be difficult, especially with long lunch lines. Biting your cheese stick can shorten your time eating and save more room for talking with friends.

Throughout the school day, your hands make contact with so many different things, and most people don’t wash them unless they go to the bathroom. Using your dirty fingers and fingernails to peel the cheese stick is extremely unhygenic and could increase your chances of getting sick.

Although biting string cheese is clearly the superior eating method, there is still a lot of stigma surrounding it. As a cheese stick biter, I receive disapproving comments from my peers just because of the way I eat it. “That’s so weird” and “Why do you eat your cheese sticks like that?” are common phrases I hear from cheese stick peelers.

In a world that seems to spin faster every day, it’s important to keep up. Don’t fall behind, bite your string cheese.