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Magic Erasers May Not Be Safe

When the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser came out a few years ago, we were sceptical that it would work like "magic" on all sorts of messes. But we tried it and to our surprise, it worked beautifully!

It cleaned scuff marks, crayons off of walls, soap scum, and just about anything else we put it to the test with. So we think pretty highly of this product.

Then I get this email today warning me that these magic erasers are dangerous to children. One woman's child used it and then his arms and face (not sure why someone would use this sponge on their face) had burns on them from the sponge.

So I checked out the story on Snopes.com. (You have to go to the bottom of the page to see this claim.)

It seems that the products contain an alkaline base that it very harmful to skin. I have to be honest and say that I have never received a burn, or anything that resembles a burn, from using these sponges. But that doesn't mean that it can't happen in the future.

Please be careful when using these sponges. If you're not using all natural products, make sure that you wear rubber gloves whenever you handle any sort of cleaning substance, regardless of how "safe" you think it may be.

Posted by Jim & Maria Hart ~ Charleston, SC Real Estate on 07/26/2007 01:37 PM

Comments (43)

Safety in the ActiveRain Channel

safety, charleston, sc, magic eraser

Originally posted at: The Charleston Blog, by Jim & Maria: Magic Erasers May Not Be Safe

43 Comments on Magic Erasers May Not Be Safe

JUL

2007

Interesting post. Anything not used for their intention could be harmful to one's health. For example on a hot day I wouldn't reach for an ice cold bottle of gasoline either. People need to exercise common sense. (update) I just realized that maybe it was the child that did this rather than the parent. If it was the child my mistake.

Shawn: I agree. I'm not sure why this product was used on the boy's arms and face. He was probably just curious, as little boys usually are.

Even without alkaline substances, Magic Eraser cleans by friction, just like a pencil eraser. What kind of moron would do that to a child?

Jim: From the email that I received, the child did it to himself. He liked to clean the scuff marks off the stairs and the crayon off the walls. He probably had marker or something on him and figured the magic eraser would get it off of him as well as it did everything else he cleaned. I would never assume that someone used this product on a child.

Your post is very timely as I just cleaned my whole bathroom 10 mins ago with the Magic Eraser! I love this product and has never affected me in any way. I will continue to use this product since I don't have any children..but then I will go to the natural products.

Thanks for the heads up!

Sounds like an error in judgement; but then again it's a child who may have had too easy access.

I followed that all the way through to the woman's website. I'll be interested in seeing what the change in the packaging is (it doesn't appear to be specified anywhere that I can find). I've seen warnings printed on packaging of various products warning not to do things that no thinking person would do with the product, just because of this kind of thing - somebody, somewhere, didn't think and/or didn't keep a close enough eye on their kid (who can't read anyway) and decided to blame the product not having a warning for that.

I did what the woman in the story said she'd done - googled Magic Eraser burn. Got a lot of hits, most of which directed me right back to her website or quoting it word for word. This is anecdotal evidence, based on one anecdote, at that.

Color me dubious.

Probably shouldn't eat them either... even if you need to clean out your system.

But seriously, why would someone give their child cleaning chemicals to play with? Or, did they just leave the cleaning supplies out where the child could get to them?

Tara: I love it, too. It works great and neither of us have had any reactions at all. I will keep it away from our son, though.

Mary: That could be the case. I wasn't there so I won't speculate. I just know Jim or I will be the only ones using it in our household.

Tricia: I looked at that website, too. Even if it did affect just one child, I think that it was one child too many. And it may happen again. We just have to be aware and cautious.

Lane: I definitely wouldn't suggest eating it. But you have to think like a child. He saw it get stuff off the walls, so why not try to get stuff his skin with it, too? It makes sense from a child's point of view. And I don't believe he was playing with it. He liked to help his mom clean. I can understand her wanting help, too.

AUG

2007

Thanks for the information - I do use these and I know others that do... I will be sure to pass this along.

Have a great day

You're very welcome, Desiree.

AUG

2007

Pretty much anything that is described as "magic" deserves some caution... Magic Erasers have been great and I love to use them however I always wondered what exactly they were made out of to work this well. Thanks for this info. I have a 17 month old who is into everything... She watches me clean and then wants to do it herself... I've had her try to steal things out of my cleaning supplies basket while I was cleaning.... I can never take my eyes off of her...

Monika: Our son is only four months old, but I know that I will have to watch him profusely when he gets a little older and more mobile. And I love these magic erasers, too. They have cleaned some really tough things, so I am a firm believer in their usefulness. But my son will not be the one using them.

Thank you very much for sharing, I never had any problems and don't have kids so it isn't a concern at this time since they do work well, but it is good to informed...thanks.

Shane: You're quite welcome. It's good to be informed, even if it doesn't apply to you at the time. It might be helpful to someone you know...you never know :)

AUG

2007

WIth 8 kids, we know what chemicals are harmful to our children because we research it. Sounds like the mother was negligent in keeping her chemicals out of the hands of a child not mature enough to use it properly. Not the chemicals fault but the parent's fault.

Cheri': Wow, eight kids. I'm sure that you have your hands full.

I have to say that if my little boy wanted to help me clean the house, I'm not about to tell him no. I don't feel as if the blame should entirely lie on the mother. The manufacturer failed to put a warning on it's packaging. If there had been a warning, I would guess that this wouldn't have happened.

SEP

2007

Read the story because I was sent the e-mail.Tragic at best but preventable by the mom. It is always so CUTE when your child mimicks you. But caution was thrown to the wind by the parent.Common sense should always prevail.

By the way, I have the Mr Clean container on my desk and it has the warnings needed to prevent such an incident

SEP

2007

I was sent the story in an email and I guess my response to it is that I think that this was an error in judgement on the mothers part. I have a step-daughter who is 4 and a daughter that is 7 1/2 months. I do know how kids like to help clean as the 4 year old volunteers all the time. But I would never give her something with chemicals that could/would harm them, even if the label doesn't say so. With 2 kids my walls don't have that many scuff marks that I would need to use a magic eraser and most things would come off with a damp cloth. But that is my opinion.

Hi Henry. Thanks for commenting.

I have also noticed that the packaging now comes with a warning label so that this incident will hopefully never happen again. But it hasn't always been there. I am very glad that it has been added.

I'm not sure who you are, but I thank you for stopping by.

At the time that this happened, the packaging really didn't have any warnings about it's use being so harmful, so I am still sticking up for the mother. I don't know her, but I can sympathize with what happened.

I know tons of people who treat the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser just like a regular, everyday sponge. And that is something that a child can safely use. Without knowing too much about the eraser, like it's chemical composition, then I can see where it would seem okay to let a child help you clean with it. And when a mother has been cleaning and cleaning, I completely understand how she would jump at the opportunity to allow one of her children to help out.

You are completely entitled to your opinion, but I honestly feel that jumping on the case of the mother is the wrong way to go here.

OCT

2007

I know you are concerned about protecting your family and friends so it is important that you have accurate information about Mr. Clean Magic Eraser products.

First, let me assure you that Magic Erasers do not contain any materials that could result in chemical burns. When used as directed on hard surfaces, the cleaning effects of Magic Eraser are amazing and safe. Like other cleaning products, Magic Eraser is meant for use by adults only, to reduce the risk of misuse by children that could possibly result in injury. This warning is reflected on all of our packaging.

The Mr. Clean Original Duo and Extra Power Erasers are comprised of melamine foam that cleans like a mild abrasive and contains no additional chemicals. Our Foaming Cleanser contains a small amount of mild detergent. Improper used of Magic Eraser on the skin may result in mild discomfort comparable to what one would receive from rubbing the skin with very fine sandpaper, but will not cause chemical burns.

It is still uncertain which specific product the 5-year old boy in the email used, but I can assure you that all Mr. Clean Magic Eraser products are safe, when used as indicated. Thanks again for your concern and we hope this alleviates any concerns you may have. Please help us stop this rumor by sharing the truth with others. For more information, please visit us at www.mrclean.com.

- Susan B

The Mr. Clean Team

Susan B: Thank you for stopping by and presenting us with some facts "from the horse's mouth". I think that your addition here on this post will help the Mr. Clean Team to dispel the rumor in that email.

NOV

2007

OMG why wouldnt they put a warning on a label!! I just got an e-mail about this and i think its just crazy and they SHOULD ban magic erasers forever!! no one should've went through what that little boy went through!!

Concerned Person: Thanks for stopping by. All Mr. Clean Magic Erasers do now come with warning labels on them. I don't think that they need to be banned -- they are tremendously useful in cleaning several surfaces around the house. But they should be used appropriately, and with supervision if in the hands of children.

Concerned Person - you might want to read all the comments and in particular go to the snopes page on this. Don't believe everything that you read - especially if it comes to your Inbox as a WARNING! SEND TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW! That's pretty much a guarantee of either a hoax or an extreme stretching of the truth.

By the way, a warning on a label can mean there's a real danger, or it can mean that one person one time did something truly stupid and so the rest of us have to be warned against doing truly stupid things. Haven't we all laughed at some of the things labels warn us against eating or doing strange things with, all because someone did and threatened to sue?

I'll have to go search out some. It's really hilarious.

NOV

2007

YIKES! I have to say I bought a huge Costco box and was very excited at how well the first one worked, and the rest have been sitting under my sink ever since. I can safely say you will not be harmed keeping them under the sink to use "tomorrow"

Dawn: I think they are an awesome product and that they are one of the most versatile cleaners around. As long as they're used properly, no one gets hurt. Glad to know that they've caused no harm under your sink :)

NOV

2007

My childrens doctor printed out copies of the story about the little boy who burned his skin by trying to clean it with a sponge. As we had to wait at least 10 minutes for the doctor, I got to read the whole sad article.

I did used to let my children use them to get the scuf markes off the walls. Ok, maybe some crayon marks too. Guess not now. It was very sad and this boy had a few major burns.

NOV

2007

Who knows if the burns even really came from the Magic Eraser or a similar product? I use mine all the time and it does a great job. This seems to be the only case of this out there. Maybe something else happened to the child...seems odd to me.

NOV

2007

Jennifer: That's interesting that your child's doctor handed you a printout of the email. Hopefully we won't see any more cases of this happening.

Anita: Sometimes it only takes one time. Snopes is a pretty reliable source for finding out whether or not something going around the internet is true. I'm sure that it took place, but I'm also sure that it won't happen again.

NOV

2007

I know you are concerned about protecting your family and friends so it is important that you have accurate information about Mr. Clean Magic Eraser products.

First, let me assure you that Magic Erasers do not contain any materials that could result in chemical burns. When used as directed on hard surfaces, the cleaning effects of Magic Eraser are amazing and safe. Like other cleaning products, Magic Eraser is meant for use by adults, to prevent possible misuse by children that could result in injury. This warning is reflected on all of our packaging.

The Mr. Clean Original Duo and Extra Power Erasers are comprised of melamine foam that cleans like a mild abrasive and contains no additional chemicals. Our Foaming Cleanser contains a small amount of mild detergent. Packaging warns against use of Magic Eraser on the skin because it may result in mild discomfort comparable to what one would receive from rubbing the skin with very fine sandpaper, but will not cause chemical burns.

-Susan B, Mr. Clean Team

Thank you, again, Susan for your input here.

OCT

2008

I'm reading this site because I have a small child sitting on my lap whose skin under her eyes are very red from a Magic Eraser. Her older sister used one that was left near a tub to get soap out of her eyes. Flame me if you'd like, but it's one of those things where you look away for one moment and it happens.

My wife didn't use any other cleaning solution with it, so we're quite sure it was the Eraser. We'll monitor it this evening (she says it doesn't hurt her and is acting fine), but if it's there in the morning, we'll taking her in.

I'll keep you posted...

Dave: I would never flame you for being a parent and being human at the same time! As much as we'd like to, we just cannot be watching our children every second of every day.

I do hope that the spot under your daughter's eye clears up overnight. Please keep us informed of how everything goes.

It's probably the same kind of reaction you'd get if you rubbed the skin under your eyes with anything abrasive. Red, and perhaps painful, but not permanently damaging.

Let us know!

OCT

2008

Tricia: I certainly hope that it's that simple!

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