Whether it is digesting a spoonful of ground cinnamon for 60 seconds without water, as was in 2012 or performing self-harm acts dared by users in an online game as was in 2019, millennials on the internet seem to be on the race to curate the next life-threatening viral challenge to satisfy their adrenaline rush.
This year’s challenge began when a video of a crowd gathered around a woman daring to ascent up a wobbly stack of blue and black milk crates was posted online.
The woman dressed in a sports bra, leggings and with pink hair confidently began her ascent only to fall on her third step, sending the crates toppling across the lawn.
The internet consequently dabbed it, ‘The Milk Crates Challenge.’
On Sunday, TikTok disabled users’ ability to search for ‘milk crate challenge’ due to the potential dangers associated with the self-imposed contest.
The daredevilry, which first gained popularity in the US and quickly spread across the globe, left participants, in most cases, physically injured or worse.
“TikTok prohibits content that promotes or glorifies dangerous acts, and we remove videos and redirect searches to our community guidelines to discourage such content. We encourage everyone to exercise caution in their behaviour, whether online or off,” A spokesman for the popular video- sharing app explained.
The Milk Crate Challenge
The ban came after several doctors and health workers across the globe raised concerns over the safety of the challenge.
But the ban by TikTok consequently saw the ‘madness’ spread to other video-sharing platforms.
Users are now posting their videos on other platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, some garnering millions of views.
The Milk Crate Challenge joins a list of long viral antics such as the Cinnamon Challenge, the Momo Challenge and the Ice and Salt Challenge that have spread across various social platforms.
A man falls down of a pyramid of milk crates while participating in the Milk Crate Challenge, on August 24, 2021 in Venice, California.
And while only few Kenyans dared to participate in the Milk Crate Challenge, the question that has remained unanswered to many is why are young people across the globe incessantly participating in dangerous antics?
While it is not an area of much study, experts opine that brain development could be a contributor.
“A teenager’s brain is still developing. There is the part of the brain that handles rational thinking called the pre-frontal cortex which does not fully develop until mid-20s,” Nuru Amin a psychologist based in Nairobi and founder of Mind over Matter told the Nation.
Fear Of Missing Out
According to Nuru, the ability to also capture instant attention and gain instant rewards from social media fuels the need to satisfy one’s adrenaline rush.
“FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) is also real among teenagers and the fact that social media rewards outrageous behavior makes things worse, meaning the more outrageous the behavior is, the bigger the reward,” Nuru explained.
With many hospitals and medical facilities struggling to cope with surging Covid-19 cases, experts warn that those attempting such challenges could wait hours for treatment.
Nuru also encouraged parents to be actively involved in their teenagers’ social media use in order to prevent them from participating in life threatening acts dabbed as challenges.
“As a parent, one of the best ways to protect your child from such challenges is simply friending them online. Engage them in whatever platforms they are, in partly to let them know that you are watching, and partly to instill in them discipline and care while they surf the internet,” she said.
More than that she also encouraged users to be mindful of what they consume online, adding that content is curated to target human’s emotions and in turn compel them to make decisions based on how they feel.
“Awareness precedes change, so be more aware as you consume content. That way you can make rational judgement and question how the content you consume affects your life directly,” Nuru told nation. BY DAILY NATION