What is the Chroming Trend on TikTok? Viral Social Media Challenge Kills A 13-Year-Old Teen
Chroming is a viral social media challenge and refers to the act of inhaling the fumes of toxic substances from sources such as an aerosol can, a spray deodorant, or a paint container. The viral challenge is trending on TikTok and its participants are posting videos of the chroming act and labeling it as ‘WhipTok’, a slang term for the recreational use of nitrous oxide. As you would be aware nitrous oxide is also referred to as laughing gas and is abused since it causes hallucinations.
However, this practice is fraught with danger and could have lethal effects. It was not long before the practice took its first victim and caused the death of a 13-year-old girl in Australia.
Chroming is the latest drug fad which is becoming a trend among Gen Z and Gem Alpha and has become the latest fad for which parents are worried and there is every reason for their concern.
The victim of Chroming was Esra Haynes, 13, an eighth-grade student from Melbourne, Australia. She was a participant in the Chroming trend on TikTok where she sniffed an aerosol deodorant. The incident is reported to have happened on March 31, 2023. The act led to the teen suffering from irreversible brain damage and cardiac arrest. She remained in critical condition in a hospital before succumbing.
The teen’s parents have started a campaign on social media platforms highlighting the risks of chroming. Her father Paul Haynes appeared on the Australian TV show ‘A Current Affair’ and said that his daughter would not have participated in the Chroming if she had known the consequences.
Chroming challenge on social media-What Does It Imply
As already stated, chroming is an informal slang that refers to the act of inhaling the fumes from a toxic source, such as an aerosol can, a spray deodorant, or a paint container. The act is trending on TikTok and videos are posted under the term ‘WhipTok” and have garnered 546.3 million views on the platform.
The genesis of this word according to the National Retail Association in Australia is traced to the practice of sniffing chrome-based paints to achieve a high. Sniffing toxic chemicals that are present in aerosol paint cans, solvents, permanent markers, nail polish removers, deodorants, lighter fuels, and even gasoline comes under the purview of chroming.
Associated risks of chroming
Sniffing the toxic chemicals in the above-mentioned products produces a quick high but the effects on the body especially the circulatory and the nervous system are extremely fatal.
The after-effects include heart attack, seizures, suffocation, coma, choking, or fatal injury, and can cause permanent organ damage.
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