Yes, people really are eating Tide pods. No, it's not safe.
Screenshot: YouTube/GloZell Green
In the USA, the latest trend is to eat detergents. More specifically: liquid washing machine pads. The Challenge is called #tidepodchallenge. These pads look like sweets, but are filled with detergents and of course they are anything but healthy!
How dangerous is that?
The challenge is even life-threatening. The capsules contain highly toxic ingredients that can lead to vomiting and shortness of breath.
Nevertheless, there still are people (mostly teens) who are willing put the poisonous capsules in the mouth. Just for fun? More likely: for the clicks. Unfortunately these clips are even trending on Instagram and YouTube. There are more and more clips in which people film themselves as they put the tabs in their mouths and bite on them. And after that, they nominate somebody to copy it. WTF!
Like most memes, it’s difficult to pin down where the Tide pod phenomenon beloved by teens first propagated, but the joke is this: Tide’s laundry pods really look like candy. A Florida confectioner started selling actual candy (called “forbidden treat”) resembling the pods.
Are grocery stores locking up tide pods because of the teens?
In addition to these clips, many users of the social media platforms are posting pictures of locked up Tide pods referring that directly to this viral trend. Are stores really beginning to feel responsible for the well-being of the customers?
In the last few years 10 people have died after eating the pods in total, all unintentionally: eight seniors believed to have cognitive illnesses and two children.
So what is the real reason causing retailers to secure their laundry products? As a slew of reports from New York magazine, detergents are high-theft items. They retain their value well on the black market, making them an attractive target. As a result, many stores have had these items under lock and key for years. It seems that social media users are only just noticing.
How YouTube and Instagram react
As CNN reports, Google is trying to stop this crazy trend by deleting Tide Pod Challenge videos. According to Google, in addition to removing the videos, users are now being admonished by themselves or others who perform and share the Tide Pod Challenge. Such actions constitute a violation of YouTube content rules.
On Instagram the hash tag #tidepods is now locked. If you're looking for the hash tag, you won't find any posts now.
Is this a new kind of modern Darwinism?
Incidentally, the dangerous trend was not new. In the spring of 2017, CollegeHumor had already set its sights on the Tide Pod Challenge. Nevertheless, it took a long time for Google to react officially. In the last few weeks, hash day #TidePodChallenge had exploded, prompting the American Association of Poison Control Centers to issue an official warning.
We have to be honest: were we all this stupid as teenagers?
Look, we just drank ourselves into oblivion, it wasn’t great but it lowered inhibitions. But it never once involved hitting the laundry room, unless that’s where Dad kept the Beam.
So please let this trend die quickly.