I recently came across a DIY kids activity about breaking glow sticks into solutions of bubbles. My reaction was immediate and visceral: this is not safe for children. It’s probably not safe for anyone.
Here’s Why
When you break open a glow stick, you release many different chemicals, particularly hydrogen peroxide and phenyl oxalate ester.
Hydrogen Peroxide is a common household chemical that is highly corrosive and can cause severe burns if it comes into contact with your skin. When you add it to soap and water, you create a highly reactive mixture that can easily splash into someone’s eyes or mouth. Have you seen a child play with bubbles? It is getting into eyes and mouths.
Ingesting a small amount of hydrogen peroxide, even diluted to 3%, can be harmful. Moreover, it can cause burns and irritate the skin on contact. Sometimes it is used as a mouthwash or diluted to clean ear canals, but not everyone seems to agree on how to use it, and you should not use it for anything other than as directed on the bottle.
Phenyl oxalate ester is another dangerous chemical. It is an irritant to eyes and skin, and can cause burns if it comes into contact with your skin. When it is combined with hydrogen peroxide it generates Dioxetanedione. Do you know what this stuff is? Do you want your kid to play with it? You can read more about the reaction in the No text – Big Chemical Encyclopedia (chempedia.info)
Plain Version
Manufacturers sell Glow Sticks with instructions not to break them open.
Additional
I was able to find another warning about this activity at stevespanglerscience.com:
“This idea is very cool and we have tried in our Spangler labs to make glowing bubbles ourselves. But this just doesn’t work. You can make the solution glow in the dark, but once the bubble is blown, the walls of the bubble are too thin to reflect the light and glow. We have also tried over the counter glow in the dark bubble solution found in many stores. Again, the solution glows, but once the bubbles are blown, they do not glow. Although this activity sounds like a lot of after dark fun, it can be dangerous, especially if the solution is accidentally swallowed or blown into the eyes. We recommend you keep the glow in the dark chemicals and the bubbles separate for safety.
A safer alternative for glow in the dark bubbles, if you still want to try it, is to use Tonic Water. Tonic Water is safe to ingest and will glow under a black light.”
I have not tried the tonic water solution, but I plan to in the future, and I will report back on it.
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This post was proofread by Grammarly