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- Once again, warnings are being issued to users of TikTok about some dangerous and potentially deadly trends going viral on the social media app.
- The Lug Nut Challenge, the Slap a Teacher Challenge, and Scalp Popping have all gained in popularity of late and all three can potentially cause serious injury or death.
- More TikTok news here.
In what is becoming a very regular occurrence, warnings are being issued about some potentially dangerous trends that have been going viral on TikTok.
Three reckless trends in particular, the Lug Nut Challenge, the Slap a Teacher Challenge, and Scalp Popping have been gaining popularity on TikTok.
Following in the footsteps of other disturbing TikTok trends involving things like frozen honey, Mr. Clean Magic Erasers, protein powder, deep fried water, and other ill-advised “challenges,” these three trends all have the potential to cause serious injury or death.
The first trend, the Lug Nut Challenge, might be the worst TikTok trend yet as it unknowingly places people in very serious danger just for the lulz.
According to CarBuzz.com, TikTok users are now stealing the lug nuts off of cars just to see what happens.
The challenge is to loosen a car’s lug nuts to see what would happen. Not your own car, though. Just any random vehicle is acceptable. The idea is then to film the aftermath to see what would happen. A more extreme version of the challenge is removing the lug nuts entirely.
22 News spoke with Interstate Towing in Chicopee. “This is not a joke; people can get seriously hurt or die,” said operations manager Stephen Gonneville. “If a tire comes off and you’re driving at a highway speed, bad things could happen. Somebody could hit a tree. Someone could hit a telephone pole, become maimed or fatally injured, and it wouldn’t be good.”
The second ill-advised TikTok challenge making the rounds, the Slap a Teacher Challenge, has gotten so out of hand that Connecticut Attorney General William Tong has felt the need to address it with educators in several states.
“TikTok fails to control the spread of dangerous content,” Tong said in a statement. “I am urging TikTok to come to CT to meet with educators and parents and commit to reforms that stop this reckless content.”
The risks involved in this TikTok challenge are obvious, including causing bodily harm to a teacher, and/or being arrested and expelled from school.
TikTok fails to control the spread of dangerous content. In CT, vandalism closed schools and the new “Slap a Teacher” challenge may put educators at risk. I am urging TikTok to come to CT to meet with educators and parents and commit to reforms that stop this reckless content. pic.twitter.com/soO2wVT49M
— AG William Tong (@AGWilliamTong) October 4, 2021
The third dangerous challenge making the rounds recently on TikTok is something called Scalp Popping.
This TikTok trend involves grabbing your hair or someone else’s hair and pulling so hard that the skin on the top of the person’s head makes a popping sound on their skull.
Anthony Youn, M.D., a plastic surgeon and TikToker himself with over 5.6 million followers, recently issued a warning about the dangers of this trend.
“This is when pull the hair so hard you pop the galea off of the skull that you create a popping sound,” Dr. Youn says in a TikTok video.
@tonyyounmd ##duet with @asmr.barber Scalp popping, anyone? ##scalppopping ##scalppop ##doctorreacts
“Please don’t do this!” Dr. Youn added in a comment on a separate video he made about Scalp Popping. “It can tear the inside of the scalp, which can bleed a ton on the inside. Think Boxer or MMA fighter with scalp hematoma.”
TikTok has removed many of the videos related to these three TikTok “challenges” already, and even issued a statement warning against Scalp Popping.
“Performance, imitation, or encouragement of dangerous amateur stunts and risky behavior that can lead to serious injury or death is not permitted on TikTok,” the company warned.
A complete lack of common sense while using the app, on the other hand, is perfectly acceptable.