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‘It works’: Genius splinter removal hack leaves people stunned

Mar 27, 2019

A mother has shared a genius hack for removing splinters quickly and painlessly. Source: Getty

Anyone who’s ever had a splinter will know just how difficult they can be to remove – especially when they pop up in hard-to-reach locations.

While tweezers can do the trick if the splinter or stinger is sticking out enough and you’re standing in the right kind of light, it can sometimes feel like a seemingly impossible task to get the pesky bugger out. What’s worse is when you’ve got a screaming grandchild who won’t let you anywhere near their splinter.

An Aussie mother has now shared her genius splinter removal hack online, sending people across the internet into meltdown. Taking to the Unmasked Hair & Beauty Facebook page last week, the unidentified mother explained that the syringes used to measure and administer medication that are found in packs of children’s medicine such as Nurofen are the secret tool to removing splinters with ease.

“Turns out they are MAGIC for removing splinters, tiny shards of glass, bee sting venom in a quick, non-invasive, painless way,” the post read. “Simply place the outter [sic] tube hole over the wound site (press firmly against skin) then pull the inside orange tube out really quick. The vacuum in the tube should extract the offending item.”

Since being uploaded last Thursday, the post has been shared close to 15,000 times and gained thousands of comments.

One person wrote: “I’ve tried this and it works! On mr 4 too who had a splinter.”

Another comment read: “Where was this hack to remove splinters when I was a child?! Forever scarred by dad digging them out with a bloody needle.”

A third message added: “Thank you for sharing. Keen to give it a go one day, as anything that can help in those situations would be great.”

Other comments said the trick worked for splinters that weren’t very deep, while another comment said it could be used to remove tiny little thorns.

It turns out the hack is one that has been around for quite a few years, with a similar Facebook post by Claire Bullen-Jones promising the same results in 2017.

“Saves so much time, and well worth seeing the kids smile at the end of it rather than red faces and tears,” she wrote. “Because the plastic is clear, you can check what’s been taken out of the skin! Best parent hack to date!”

Others have also taken to social media over the years to prove the hack works. One lady wrote on Facebook last year: “So the splinter/ Calpol syringe trick works!
One suction and it was out!

A person on Twitter added: “Best hack ever. I just pulled a tiny splinter out of my palm with a kids medicine syringe. Thank you, Internet.”

The hack also appeared on US health show The Doctors in 2018. Presenter Travis Lane Stork was sceptical and claimed the hack would actually mean pushing the splinter further into the skin, but demonstrated that the trick could work for bulky splinters.

“I actually think it’s creative and it could work, but I wouldn’t recommend it,” he said.