Teenagers like to push the limits. This is worse when they are in a group and susceptible to peer pressure. Social media adds a whole new dimension to this.
Dangerous social media challenges are not a new phenomenon. There was the Tide Pod challenge, which dared teens to eat Tide Pods. There was also the Benadryl challenge, which encouraged people to take large amounts of antihistamine to induce hallucinations. The latest is the NyQuil chicken challenge, which is exactly what it sounds like, cooking chicken in NyQuil. The FDA is warning parents about its dangers.
The US Food and Drug Administration issued a statement about this potentially hazardous social media challenge: “One social media trend relying on peer pressure is online video clips of people misusing nonprescription medications and encouraging viewers to do so too. These video challenges, which often target youths, can harm people — and even cause death.”
The FDA goes on: “Boiling a medication can make it much more concentrated and change its properties in other ways.” This challenge can be dangerous even if a teen does not eat the chicken, so it is best just to not participate. “Even if you don’t eat the chicken, inhaling the medication’s vapors while cooking could cause high levels of the drugs to enter your body. It could also hurt your lungs.”
Teenagers are more likely to be influenced by social media challenges because of where they are in their development. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, a person's prefrontal cortex, which controls rational thinking, is not fully developed until they are in their mid-20s. Parents need to keep a watchful eye on and an open dialogue with their teens to avoid unhealthy behaviors such as social media challenges.
