After less than a month into 2018, the American Association of Poison Control Centers has already reported 39 cases of intentional misuse of single-use laundry packets (as of Jan. 15) in people aged between 13 to 19. The AAPCC reported that 91% of those cases were ingestion. In 2017, the same demographic misused laundry packets 53 times for the year. Why are these reports on the rise? Many people on the internet are speculating that it’s because of the uprising of satirical “news” channels and blogs trying to be hip or edgy.
There have been multiple videos surfacing of teens and young adults eating these colorful liquid packs on Facebook and YouTube under the name “Tide Pod Challenge.” Since the challenge went viral, Procter and Gamble, the manufacturer of Tide Pods, has released a few press releases and teamed up with Facebook and YouTube to take down any posts advocating the misuse of the product. In a statement, Proctor and Gamble said they “are deeply concerned about the intentional and improper use of liquid laundry packs by young people engaging in intentional self-harm challenges.” P&G also claims it is working closely with the American Cleaning Institute, a cleaning-product safety organization, to create a campaign around college campuses that teaches students laundry packs are only meant for laundry.
While these brightly colored packs might look enticing, they definitely should not be consumed. It’s not safe and can cause extreme harm. If you or someone you know has ingested a single-use laundry pack, please call your local poison control center immediately.
For more information, visit:
http://www.aapcc.org/press/83/
http://fortune.com/2018/01/22/pg-stop-eating-tide-pods/
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/20/us/tide-pod-challenge.html
by Haleigh McNabb
