We often see trends come and go and we don’t tend to give them much thought. Sure, when some type of new clothing line or a new hairdo becomes popular, it may be brought to our attention quickly but some trends even tend to fly under the radar. These trends go beyond being in the fashion industry, they are also happening with our children. As you are about to see, it’s important for parents to keep up with these trends because it can mean the safety of their child.
I’ll be the first one to admit that I have been part of many childhood crazes from the time I was very young. The majority of them are harmless and they tend to come and go, perhaps even multiple times a year. We’ve seen trends that include anything from trading Pokémon cards to putting baseball cards in your bicycle spokes. They are a lot of fun but every once in awhile, there is something that comes along that could be hazardous to the health of a child. That includes slime, which has been a popular trend for quite some time.
Since slime is so popular, hundreds of recipes have popped up online on how to make it at home.
Most parents tend to like having their kids play with slime because it keeps them busy and keeps them away from the computer screen.
At a sleepover party, however, a child was harmed by the slime she was playing with. Her name is Kathleen Quinn and she was one of the girls at the party. They were playing with a homemade slime and the unexpected happened.
As Kathleen was playing, her hands began to hurt. A burning sensation started and it kept getting worse. She started to run her hands under cold water but it took a while before the pain went away. In the end, she had 3rd° burns on her fingers.
“She was crying in pain. ‘My hands hurt. My hands hurt!’ And we looked at them and they were covered in blisters.” – Quinn’s mother
They took Quinn to the doctor and he asked her what slime she was playing with.
The slime was homemade from a mixture of school glue and borax (sodium borate).
It turns out that handling borax for too long can cause the burns. It is not something that should be included in the child’s toy.
Borax is harmful to the skin. It can also affect the breathing passages, eyes, nasal cavities, and the respiratory tract. Children don’t tend to be as hygienic as adults, so they can be at even more of a risk.
Quinn had the first story to tell but not the last. There have been other stories about children who were burned from homemade slime.
As it turns out, the reports of these injuries are extending beyond the borders of the United States.
A child in the UK had a similar problem. It was UK child YouTuber DeeJay Jemmett. Her mother said that she had been playing with the slime and her skin was peeling off. “Within 48 hours, her skin had started to peel off. From there it got worse.”
A plastic surgeon had to be called in to restore the girl’s hands to where they were previously.
The burns may also extend beyond the hands and spread to the arms and face.
One of the big problems is the lack of information that comes when you use one of these online recipes. If the mixture has sodium borate in it, caution should be exercised. In addition, contact lens solution can cause problems as well, and it is a popular ingredient.
This is something that is good for every parent to know, especially if their children loves playing with slime.
Source: Relieved