A 13-year-old boy has died after completing a patient challenge on the TikTok platform that involved an antihistamine overdose.
Jacob Stephens, of Columbus, Ohio, US, was attempting to replicate the dangerous challenge by taking the over-the-counter antihistamine drug Benadryl in an attempt to create hallucinations.
There is a well-known trend on social media and especially on Tik Tok for children to carry out challenges, which often endanger their lives.
The challenge, which will later be uploaded to social media, was filmed by his friends at home when the young man began to break down.
Jacob was then taken to a nearby hospital, where doctors warned his family that he might never wake up because “it was so much on his body,” according to his father, Justin.
A very disturbing trend on TikTok
Justin wanted to share the tragic story to warn anyone against participating in the sick and reckless “challenges” and to urge parents to monitor what their kids are doing on their cell phones.
The manufacturer, Johnson & Johnson, called for the “extremely disturbing” trend of these platform challenges to be halted “immediately”.
“He will not open his eyes, he will not breathe, he will not smile, he will not walk, he will not speak,” the unfortunate father told reporters.
He died six days later while on a ventilator after his brain stopped responding. Justin described her son being off the ventilator as “the worst day of his life”.
“I want everyone to know about my son.”
This led to the family devoting themselves to spreading awareness of the serious challenges through TikTok and ensuring that no other family suffers the same fate.
Justin urged other parents to be aware of what their kids are doing on social media. “Watch what they’re doing on the phone. Talk to them about the situation. I want everyone to know about my son.”
The stricken family is calling on the political establishment to convince TikTok to impose age restrictions on account creation, which would force users to provide identification before they are allowed on the platform.
For her part, Diana Stevens, Jacob’s grandmother, has been calling politicians to try to convince them to put an upper age limit on purchasing drugs like Benadryl.
She said, “There shouldn’t be much need to buy medicine… I’m going to do everything I can to try and make sure that no other child goes through this.”
“Jacob is one of the best people I have ever met,” said the father tearfully. “No matter how bad a day I was having, no one could make me smile. Jacob could.”
The Food and Drug Administration warned parents about the dangers of their children participating in such challenges, stating, “Taking higher than recommended doses of the allergy drug diphenhydramine (Benadryl) can lead to serious heart problems, seizures, coma, or even death.”
“Hipster-friendly coffee fanatic. Subtly charming bacon advocate. Friend of animals everywhere.”
More Stories
Australia: Knife attack by a 16-year-old
The President of the University of Glasgow was prevented from entering France
The first step towards a truce in Gaza: news of Hamas agreeing to a hostage exchange plan