In a tragic incident, a teenage girl in Arizona, United States lost her life while performing the ‘dusting challenge’, the new online trend. 19-year-old Renna O’Rourke, went into cardiac arrest while attempting the deadly viral social media trend called the ‘dusting’ or ‘chroming’.
The dusting challenge is a viral social media trend in which the participants are required to record themselves sniffing keyboard cleaning spray to get high and gain views on their profiles and posts. As per reports, Renna O’Rourke was trying this challenge when she went into cardiac arrest. She was rushed to the hospital where she remained for a week before being declared brain dead. She died of sudden sniffing syndrome.
Her parents had no idea
Grieving parents of Renna O’Rourke heard about the dusting challenge for the first time after their daughter fell victim to it. Her father, Aaron O’Rourke, recalls how she used to tell him that she would get famous one day. “She always said, ‘I’m gonna be famous, Dad. Just you watch. I’m gonna be famous,’ and unfortunately, this is not under the most optimal of circumstances,” said the heartbroken father.
Renna’s mother, Dana O’Rourke said that the challenge is easily accessible to youngsters as it requires no ID proof. “There’s no ID required. It’s odorless. It’s everything kids look for. They can afford it, they can get it, and it doesn’t show in mom and dad’s drug test,” the mother said.
After losing their child to the dangerous social media challenge, the parents are now trying to spread awareness about the social media trend to prevent other children from falling victim to it.
How the trend is threatening the lives of youngsters
Describing the dangers of the social media trend, Dr Randy Weisman, the head of the Intensive Care Unit at HonorHealth Scottsdale Osborn Medical Centre, said that the trend is “extremely concerning”. He said that when the participants inhale the chemicals while trying the challenge, the oxygen in their lungs and bodies is replaced by the chemicals. This can make them feel high for a few minutes but it causes irreversible and fatal damage to their bodies.
“When they inhale these chemicals in the gas it will actually replace the oxygen within their lungs and within the rest of their body,” the doctor explained adding that it can lead to failure of liver, heart or lungs.
“She’s not the only one that this has happened to. Several other teenagers have succumbed to this same disorder,” the doctor said.
This is not the first time that a dangerous social media trend has resulted in loss of life. Several similarly dangerous social media challenges have emerged over the last few years which have resulted in the death of naive youngsters. One such challenge called the Blue Whale Challenge surfaced in 2016. It was an online game which involved performing 50 tasks over a period of 50 days which ultimately ended in the participants committing suicide. Several youngsters are said to have lost their lives due to this game.
How to protect teenagers from this dangerous trend
The very obvious step is to have regular interactions with your child and educate them about the risks involved with following these dangerous online trends. Making them aware about the dangers is the very first step.
Social media companies can also play a major role in this. This dusting challenge has gone viral thanks to videos shared on TikTok and other social media apps. These apps can take note of the content being shared on their platforms, and can censor or remove these dangerous challenges that they know jeopardise the health of immature kids who don’t know any better than following the latest trend.
Another area that can be looked at is bringing in new laws. Making sure that minors can’t buy the substances that can be dangerous to them and can be used for self-harm is another step that can be taken. In fact, Renna’s parents are planning to advocate for this measure so that another teen doesn’t lose their lives like their daughter.
