Warning as 'dangerous TikTok trend' has people drinking cleaning product
Experts have hit out as people on TikTok venture to extreme lengths for their health - by drinking a substance typically used for cleaning.
Health nuts on the app and across social media claim to be ingesting borax as part of the latest wellness fad, claiming without evidence the crystals can help inflammation, arthritis and even auto-immune conditions.
Videos show self-styled wellness influencers dissolving the substance - which contains boron, a natural mineral - in glasses of water and downing it. But scientists have lambasted the new trend as "potentially dangerous", warning others not to try it.
Nathan Kilah, a senior chemistry lecturer at the University of Tasmania, says there is "no evidence to support the latest claims" and that borax could leave some people seriously unwell.
Writing in The Conversation journal, he said: "This is yet another hoax “remedy” in a long list of false hope products. Alternative therapies are often touted as being “natural” and therefore supposedly non-toxic. But while borax is naturally occurring, this isn’t a guarantee of safety."
Apple TV release MLS Season Pass worldwide and announce free opening weekend
What is borax?
A since-deleted clip which shows one woman recommending dissolving a small amount of borax in water and drinking it for its so-called 'health benefits' (TikTok)
Suggested trending topics when searching for 'borax' on TikTok (TikTok)Originally used as a food preservative in the early 1900s, borax is a salt formed from the chemical elements boron, sodium, oxygen and hydrogen. It's now regularly used as a cleaning product as well as in contact lens solution and as a pestkiller. If you have kids, you may see it regularly used in slime-making kits, too.
But while great as a household essential, there is no scientific evidence it should be used as a health supplement and, in fact, it's actually considered unsafe to eat or drink.
A poison squad investigating its use as a preservative in the early 20th century found many people ingesting it would experience headaches, nausea, vomiting, gastric discomfort and more. Borax is also classed as a reproductive toxin, meaning it could impact fertility or even harm an unborn child.
Despite these warnings, however, clips on TikTok, YouTube and Facebook posts have showed people boasting of taking the stuff for its alleged "health benefits".
One woman claims in a since-deleted clip how she uses the stuff to make "charged water" as she takes a pinch of it from a jar and appears to drink the solution on screen.
Another man on the app says the solution can be used externally to stem feminine hygiene problems, while one woman claiming to be a GP posted on a public Facebook page last month claiming it can help treat osteoporosis and even cancer.
One doctor on TikTok however described it as "the stupidest health trend I've ever seen", saying, "for the love of your kidneys just because it's natural doesn't mean it's good for you to eat".
"A number of dangerous social media challenges have gone viral over the past decade," Mr Kilah writes. "One notable example was the 'Tide pod challenge', in which users recorded themselves biting or eating laundry pods."
He adds: "As far as borax is concerned, the main product shown in the TikTok videos has an SDS (safety data sheet) that lists the human silhouette and exclamation mark pictograms.
"These correspond to the listed hazards of skin irritation, serious eye irritation and potential damage to fertility or an unborn child."
Woman's blood boils as date stands her up over her response to innuendo text
TikTok has been contacted for comment.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
