Another Dumb TikTok Challenge: Dry Scooping Pre-Workout Powder
There is another TikTok Challenge making its rounds, and this one is, surprisingly, trending among people older than you'd think.
It's called the "Dry Scooping" Challenge, and it entails consuming pre-workout powder.
According to the story from WAFB, it appears that young adults are eating scoops of pre-workout powder without mixing it with water. What could go wrong when you put a scoop of powder in your mouth?
I'll show you what could go wrong: remember the Cinnamon Challenge?
Now, I am thinking that some of the dangers of pre-workout powder are different than the dangers of cinnamon, but they both have one thing in common: having powder in your mouth that could be easily inhaled is not safe. At all. And, with cinnamon being a spice, it can affect people more severely if inhaled.
According to the National Institutes of Health, inhaling cinnamon can cause swelling and scarring of the lung tissue, and even bring about pneumonia:
Cinnamon inhalation can cause pulmonary inflammation, predisposing airways to epithelial lesions and scarring. Aspirated powder entering the upper airways can cause inflammation and, in more severe cases, aspiration pneumonia. - NIH
The thing about the pre-workout powder is the fact that many of them contain caffeine and, when ingested undiluted, could cause a heart attack (which is what happened to one young woman in the video). Newsweek reported about one fitness buff who swallowed 4 scoops of pre-workout powder and then chased it with a pre-workout shake. He was later found unconscious and rushed to the hospital where they recorded his blood pressure as 330/180 and he was showing signs of brain damage.
The bottom line is this: just because you see it on the internet does not mean it is safe. Or smart. Or worthy of repeating.
8 Signs You Are A 'Type A' Personality
10 Foods That Can Help Boost Your Immune System
These are the Healthiest Vegetables