Milk Crate Challenge: Protect kids from this toxic online trend

Trending right now on the internet is the innocent sounding Milk Crate Challenge. Videos are viral everywhere, on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter, and it’s a huge hit on YouTube.  

What is the milk crate challenge?  
If you search for it, you will see videos of people stacking milk crates in a pyramid-like structure, climbing them like a staircase, and falling down really hard. This is bound to happen because the crates topple. In some cases, a lucky climber may stay on top for a few seconds.   

How did the challenge start and what are people saying about it? 
It's unclear how exactly the trend got started, though it clearly grew through August 2021, especially during weekends, and is now an internet sensation. The milk crate challenge got featured on popular American TV show Jimmy Kimmel Live. Guest host Stephen A. Smith showed video clips with millions of views and said how dumb he thinks the challenge is. "We're all so worried about COVID, but TikTok is what's going to kill us," he said.  

What is TikTok saying about the challenge? 
If you type in "milk crate challenge" on TikTok’s search bar, you will see a message saying, "This phrase may be associated with behavior or content that violates our guidelines." Before getting banned on TikTok, videos with the hashtag #milkcratechallenge were getting more than 10 million views, and #cratechallenge had more than 82 million views.  

But why is the milk crate challenge dangerous?  
According to Dr. George Gantsoudes, a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon with the Pediatrics Specialists of Virginia, USA, tumbles that look so funny on video could potentially result in fractures of the pelvis, collarbone, and legs, as well as ligament injuries in the ankle and knee, dislocations or even paralysis. He also pointed out that if a child tore a ligament from the challenge, hospitals busy with COVID19 patients won’t be able to help. But the lingering injury could be disastrous for the kid. This sentiment has been echoed by doctors in Baltimore, Mumbai and several other cities.  

We side with the doctors. A few seconds of internet fame is not worth broken bones.