Utah State University student hospitalized after ingesting Tide pod
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LOGAN, Utah — A Utah State University student was hospitalized Saturday after reportedly ingesting a Tide laundry pod.
The incident happened at the Richards Hall on-campus housing unit, according to KTVX, and the condition of the student was not available.
Teens across the country have been increasingly biting into laundry pods, with some posting the videos online as part of a “challenge,” according to the American Association of Poison Control Centers. The results can be potentially harmful or even deadly.
In the first 15 days of 2018, poison control centers received 39 such calls — the same number they received in all of 2016, the association said.
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In videos posted on YouTube and social media, people gag, cough and sometimes begin foaming at the mouth after biting into laundry pods.
“The ‘laundry packet challenge’ is neither funny nor without serious health implications,” Stephen Kaminski, the association’s CEO and executive director, said in a statement Tuesday. “We have seen a large spike in single-load laundry packet exposures among teenagers since these videos have been uploaded.”
YouTube announced late last week it’s taking down clips that show people taking bites of the pods. Facebook has also removed posts from its platforms, including Instagram.