Various brands of slime, a viscous modelling mass which has soared in popularity with children recently, have been found by DECO to have dangerously high levels of boron within them.


Boron is a colourless and odourless substance which is classified in Europe, when above certain levels, to be toxic. Boron can cause irritation to the eyes, while ingestion can lead to diarrhoea, nausea, fatigue, vomiting and cramps.


DECO purchased eight different slime products in their investigation and sent them for chemical testing and the results, which have already been passed on to ASAE, found that only five of the samples proved to be safe.


“We asked the lab to investigate 19 potentially dangerous elements in the slime, including solvents, tin and boron, to determine if these elements were present in dangerous quantities”, said a statement from DECO.


Two products were found to have excess levels of boron (Poopsie Slime Surprise and Slime Intergalactic SLI0010), while a further slime was found to have levels close to the maximum limit (Nickelodean Slime Super Stretchy).


DECO also pointed out that children are increasingly making their own slime at home using substances such as shaving foam, shower gel, boric acid and contact lens fluids.


The popularity of homemade slime has even led to some pharmacies stocking several packs of boric acid to meet demand.


DECO warns about the dangers of “mixing chemical substances without any previous knowledge and without concrete indications of the quantities to be used” and recommends that home recipes should be supervised by adults and that children should wash their hands after making slime.