U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Sunday closed part of the southern border with Mexico and fired tear gas and pepper spray at Central American migrants attempting to breach a fence separating the two countries.

Images of fleeing women and children, like the one captured in the tweet below, were widely shared, drawing condemnation from those calling it “inhumane,” “an abomination” and “antithetical to America.”

CBP said “several migrants threw projectiles at the agents in San Diego. Border Patrol agents deployed tear gas to dispel the group because of the risk to agents’ safety. Several agents were hit by the projectiles.”

On Fox & Friends, host Ainsley Earhardt had a different message. “If you don’t want a speeding ticket, don’t speed,” she said.

Besides, pepper spray is no big deal, according to former U.S. Border Patrol deputy chief Ron Colburn, who explained to the Fox hosts early Monday how it could be used as a topping on a favorite Mexican dish:

“ ‘It’s natural. You could actually put it on your nachos and eat it. It’s a good way of deterring people without long-term harm.’ ” — Former U.S. Border Patrol deputy chief Ron Colburn

Colburn added that the use of pepper spray on the “migrant caravan” was “absolutely” warranted.

According to a joint study from Duke and the University of North Carolina cited in the Daily Beast, pepper spray isn’t as harmless as Colburn suggests.

“There is no real scientific basis for the claim that OC sprays are relatively safe,” the authors wrote in the 2004 report. “In fact, a number of reports have associated serious adverse sequelae, including death, with legitimate use, as well as misuse and abuse, of these sprays.”

Here’s how Todd Floyt of Zarc International, which is billed as the creators of the original pepper spray, described the painful experience: “When your skin and your face start to burn, it’s all, ‘My god, my face is melting,’” he told USA Today. “It feels like it’s never going to end.”

Watch the full Fox segment here, with Colburn appearing at the 12:45 mark: