The Food and Drug Administration is issuing a warning against cooking chicken in NyQuil after a viral TikTok challenge encouraged people to try it.
In a statement, the FDA wrote: “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 TikTok challenge tells people to cook chicken in NyQuil or other similar medications. However, boiling some medications may be harmful to breathe anyways, so eating boiled medications is also completely dangerous.
“Boiling a medication can make it much more concentrated and change its properties in other ways. Even if you don’t eat the chicken, inhaling the medication’s vapors while cooking could cause high levels of drugs to enter your body. It could also hurt your lungs.”
It’s not the only TikTok challenge to involve medication, however. Not too long ago, another challenge consisted of TikTokers consuming large doses of Benadryl, which is an allergy medication. The goal was to cause hallucinations, apparently.
However, the FDA has stated that the “Benadryl Challenge” has led to hospitalizations and deaths in younger people.
The FDA suggested that parents keep medications away from children or lock up the medications in order to prevent an accidental overdose. Both the FDA and the American Academy of Pediatrics are encouraging parents to sit down and talk with their kids about the dangers of social media trends like these.
The AAP also stated that “social media rewards outrageous behavior, and the more outrageous, the bigger the bragging rights. It’s a quick moving, impulsive environment, and the fear of losing out is real for teens. That environment plays into a teen’s underdeveloped ability to think through their actions and possible consequences.”
Social media challenges can be deadly, so if you’re a parent, exercise caution and make sure your children aren’t doing anything dangerous or harmful. Additionally, if you’re a TikTok user yourself, be aware of the dangers of these trends and don’t copy them. It’s really not worth it.
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