If you're a parent, you've used a Magic Eraser. But how do they work, exactly? What makes them so magic?

Let's face it: if you've ever had a toddler in your home for longer than a few hours, you have definitely purchased and used your fair share of Magic Erasers. Honestly, even if you only had a toddler around for an hour and happened to leave a Sharpie within reach, you've probably had to use one. Magic Erasers are a MUST for parents, or even for people who like a spotless house. Those innocent looking little sponges pack more cleaning power inside their little rectangle form than even the most powerful chemical cleaners. Plus, they're easy to use and don't require you to open the windows to air out the noxious fumes. They really are magic! But how does a Magic Eraser actually work? How can they remove everything from grease splatters to crayon scribbles with nothing but a little bit of water? The magic, as it turns out, is in the foam of the sponge itself.

These little pieces of white sponge may look innocent enough, but with a little water, they are transformed into cleaning powerhouses. They can be used on most surfaces in your home, from stove tops to sinks to baseboards. When dry, they feel a bit like stiff craft foam. But once you add just a bit of water, you can scrub out even the toughest stains, and not have to worry about harsh chemicals or the fumes from cleaners like bleach spray. Seriously, these things work on just about anything - Sharpie, crayon, hard water stains, bath tub grime, scuff marks on walls and baseboards. Just a word of caution: these abrasive little sponges will remove just about anything, including paint and varnish on walls and furniture.

They get their name for good reason - because their cleaning power really does make them seem like they're magic! But the science behind why Magic Erasers erase pretty much everything is relatively simple. Magic Erasers are made of something called melamine foam, which is used in several different applications, including sound and heat insulation. The melamine foam sets the sponges apart from other cleaning agents, because it performs so well that other cleaning agents aren't even necessary. The melamine combined with other compounds creates the foam of a Magic Eraser, which has a microscopic texture that is very similar to sandpaper.

So what are those other compounds? Melamine foam is made of formaldehyde-melamine-sodium bisulfite copolymers. We know, that's a lot of big (and kind of scary) words. But those ingredients form the foam sponge, and at the microscopic level, the resin in melamine foam is almost as hard as glass. So it's not wiping off the stains so much as it's removing it through very fine abrasion. It scrapes off the stain, and traps the dirt inside the structure of the sponge. When you put it that way, it actually does sound sort of like magic!

We completely understand why people would freak out when they see the word 'formaldehyde'. After all, that's what's used to embalm bodies! But the formaldehyde in formaldehyde-melamine-sodium bisulfite copolymers and formaldehyde as we're familiar with it in other uses are two very different things. In fact, Magic Erasers do not contain any formaldehyde at all - it's simply a chemical in the present in the sponge's physical structure that, when combined with the other ingredients, forms melamine. Magic Erasers are completely non-toxic, and in fact none of the ingredients in melamine foam are subject to health-related labeling laws in North America or Europe. You should still take caution around kids and pets, since swallowing a piece of Magic Eraser can cause an intestinal blockage or pose a choking hazard. But you don't have to worry about using one to get the Sharpie off your kid's desk or the crayon off their bed frame.

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Jayme is a single mom of two little girls in Southern California. Because being a single, work-from-home mom isn't stressful enough, she also has two dogs (but only one of them is crazy!). Jayme has been writing professionally for just over two years, and while she covers a lot of topics, her wheelhouse is parenting and trending news, both of which provide a wealth of material on a daily basis. She speaks her mind, cusses too much, and always sticks up for what she believes in. Her opinions are always her own, but let's be honest, they're usually always right. You can find more of her work on Mommyish, Care, and Mommy Nearest.