Booseum: Make Snail Slime! (2024)

FAQs

How do you make snail slime? ›

And to ease any concerns about the safety of the snails when it comes to extracting the mucin for beauty products, most brands have practices in place that do not harm the snails. Their mucin is excreted as a protective measure when they're under stress, but it's fairly easy to collect.

The snails are placed on a mesh net in a dark and calm room. As nocturnal creatures, snails prefer this environment. For about 30 minutes, the snails are left alone to roam the net freely, leaving mucin in their trails.

Snail slime is naturally composed of Allantoin, Collagen, Elastin, Glycolic Acid, Vitamins A and C and Antibiotic Peptides. These active ingredients moisturize, firm the skin and fight against imperfections and skin aging.

Snail and slug mucus is a sticky elastic substance secreted by specific glands with adhesive and lubricants properties that allows the animals to firmly adhere themselves to many different surfaces, including rough terrain.

Snail and slug slime is a type of mucus – an external bodily secretion, composed largely of water and protein. It's pretty remarkable stuff – gastropod mucus possess two seemingly incompatible traits – it is extremely sticky but can also act as a lubricant.

According to Dr. Desai-Solomon, snail mucin does not have any documented side effects. As such, snail mucin is not known to clog pores and should not cause breakouts.

Snails have very simple brain cells, and these are not organized into a single brain structure like mammal brains. However, snails do react to their environments in ways that include moving away from certain stimuli, suggesting they can feel at least some form of discomfort.

Snail mucin is snail slime, or snail secretion, which means it is derived from snails and therefore not vegan, per Everyday Health. Many snail mucin products do claim to be cruelty-free, which is not the same as vegan.

How gross is snail mucin? ›

When you think snail mucin, you think slimy and gross. This wasn't sticky or slimy whatsoever. I was afraid it was gonna leave my skin feeling gross and slippery. Surprisingly, my skin drank it right up!

Unlike animal products like beeswax, where the extraction is not only harmless to the animal but is even deemed necessary (so they can replenish their hive), snail mucin extraction is an entirely unnecessary and painful process. This process has raised ethical concerns, especially for those prioritizing animal rights.

They can also contract lungworm if a slug or snail crawls over any toys or chews left out in the garden. By ingesting slug and snail slime, your dog is swallowing the tiny larvae excreted, which can burrow through your dog's gut wall and travel back to the heart and around the body as they turn into adults.

Known as snail mucin, that slime has intrigued scientists for centuries as well. Early snail handlers noticed that snail slime left their hands feeling softer. That led skin care companies to market snail mucin as a way to reduce inflammation and signs of aging.

Snail mucin may seem like an unconventional skincare ingredient, but many people swear by its anti-aging, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, hydrating, and wound healing properties. There's even some early evidence to suggest that it could fight certain types of skin cancer.

There's evidence snail mucus can help with wound healing and treat burns. Snail mucus also has antibacterial and antifungal properties. Another study tested its ability to stop bacteria in wounds, and some snail mucus performed better than commercial antibiotics, including amoxicillin and streptomycin.

“Laboratory studies have shown it can benefit cell cultures, possibly enhancing collagen and elastin production,” he says. “A placebo-controlled study funded by a product manufacturer indicated that snail mucin could reduce wrinkles over three months with no adverse effects.