The social media-sphere has been flooded with one of the toughest and most entertaining challenges to date, and while the crate challenge has provided many of us with laughs, it looks like those who have chosen to participate could be putting themselves at serious risk.
The original videos feature folks attempting to climb stacked crates, most of whom are unsuccessful after their first few steps. People have since put their own spin on the challenge, and a select few have even made it across. Regardless, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Vonda Wright warns against doing the challenge, or potentially risk sustaining lifelong health injuries.
“This is probably the one that I’ve seen that has the highest potential for bodily injury that will take people out not just of their daily lives, but could have lifelong implications,” Dr. Wright told NBC News. “I get that it’s fun but let’s use our brains for something other than hitting our heads on the ground.”
According to Dr. Wright, people who attempt the challenge could sustain injuries such as wrist fractures, forearm fractures, broken femur bones, torn ACL’s, or concussions with a head bleed that could potentially cause lifelong brain damage. It’s unclear how many serious injuries have been reported, but people taking the climb to the top of the crates are taking some hard falls.
While the crate challenge is not the first of many potentially dangerous internet stunts, NBC News reports platforms like TikTok have disabled users from searching the term “milk crate challenge” due to the potential dangers associated with the trend.
“TikTok prohibits content that promotes or glorified dangerous acts, and we remove videos and redirect searches to our Community Guidelines to discourage such content,” a TikTok spokesperson told NBC. “We encourage everyone to exercise caution in their behavior whether online or off.”
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