Cinnamon is known to most as a harmless spice that adds a little kick and flavor to culinary concoctions, but according to a new study, it can kill you.
The trending "cinnamon challenge" has videos all over YouTube of people ingesting a spoonful of cinnamon--not as pleasant as you would think--without drinking any liquids. This results in the challenge-taker to cough, as a burning sensation triggers a gag reflex. Sure, most people recover quickly from the experience, but researchers from the University of Miami founds that many people end up in the hospital due to coughing, vomiting, nosebleeds, and/or chest tightness.
"The health risks of the challenge are relatively low, [but] they are unnecessary and avoidable," wrote coauthors Dr. Steven E. Lipschultz, Dr. Judy Schaechter and Amelia Grant Alfieri in the journal Pediatrics.
The authors explain that the cellulose fibers that make up cinnamon do not biodegrade in the lungs. When a dare-taker (usually a teenager) ingests a tablespoon of the spice, a portion of it gets inhaled into the lungs causing inflammation and in some case, even pneumonia. It can also trigger an asthma attack in individuals who are allergic to the spice and is a threat to those with pulmonary diseases.
"People are being poisoned and sickened because of this," said Dr. Lipshultz to The New York Times. "We have seen a rise in calls to poison control centers around the United States that mirrored the rise in YouTube videos and their viewing. And that's just for the acute issues."
There's even a website dedicated to the challenge with videos of YouTube users who have tried the challenge.
"They say the challenge is simple," says the website, which repeatedly tells viewers not to attempt the challenge. "Take 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and try to swallow it within 60 seconds without any water. People think it's so easy to do, yet it's practically impossible."
"When people try to do it, the first symptom is the inhalation of the cinnamon which is almost immediately followed by "dragon breath" where the user exhales a big puff of cinnamon," reveals the website.
While no studies have looked at the effect of humans inhaling the spice, the authors of the study found that a previous study has found that inhalted cellulose dust (such as cinnamon) can cause scarring in the lungs of rats.
One of the many who have suffered from the consequences of the cinnamon challenge include a Ypsilanti, Michigan teen who was hospitalized for a collapsed lung after attempting the cinnamon challenge last year. Dejah Reed, 16, took the challenge four times until her last attempt left her in the hospital for four days.
"I was laughing very hard and I coughed it out and I inhaled it into my lungs," said Reed to NBC News. "I couldn't breathe."
Reed adds that even now, she loses her breath from running or talking too fast--she never had breathing problems before. After her traumatic experience, the teen started her own website--No Cinnamon Challenge--to warn teens of the risk.
The authors of the study blame the popularity that this seemingly harmless challenge has received on the Internet and call for doctors and parents to intervene. In fact, the study cites that the American Association of Poison Control received 51 calls relating to the cinnamon challenge in 2011, but that number spiked to 178 in the first six months of 2012. Incidentally, the challenge had 2.4 million hits on Google in 2012.
"Given the allure of social media, peer pressure, and a trendy new fad, pediatricians and parents have a 'challenge' of their own in counseling tweens and teens regarding the sensibilities of the choices they make," write the authors.
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