Play-Doh - What is it made of?

Hasbro, the manufacturer of Play-Doh, says their very popular modeling compound is made of a mixture of water, salt, and flour. Its 2004 United States patent enumerated its composition with the following: water, a starch-based binder, a retrogradation inhibitor, salt, lubricant, surfactant, preservative, hardener, humectant, fragrance, and color.

A noteworthy Play Doh characteristic is its signature smell. Everyone who played with it would be nostalgic about its smell being a fusion of a sweet, a bit musky, vanilla-like fragrance, with a hint of cherry, and the natural smell of a salted and wheat dough.

Play Doh is non-toxic, non-irritating, and anti-allergic except for children who are allergic to wheat gluten, and its high salt content in the compound may be harmful to pets, especially when ingested.

What is Play Doh made of?

Play Doh is a very flexible toy, not just a modeling compound but a toy that could be mashed, squashed, rolled, cut, and kneaded all for the fun of it, and nobody would stop you!

It might have a secret magic ingredient that's a trade secret, but Hasbro, its maker and distributor, revealed some of its content like water, salt, and flour. It doesn't have peanuts, peanut oil, or milk in its composition but does contain wheat.

The current Play-Doh U.S patent affirmed that the compound is primarily a starch-based binder incorporated with water, salt, lubricant, and preservative.

These are what Play-Doh contains:

• Water
• Starch-based binder
• Retrogradation inhibitor
• Salt
• Lubricant
• Surfactant
• Preservative
• Hardener
• Humectant
• Fragrance
• Color

Its composition makes it what it is with its trademark texture, fragrance, colors, and appearance. What makes its softness and texture is the mixture of the starch-based binder and water.

What was made to be a wallpaper cleaner is now the world's number one reusable modeling compound with over 500 million cans sold each year and a total 3 billion cans of Play-Doh sold since 1956.

You can find Play-Doh toys on Amazon.