A mum was left fearing for her daughter’s life after she became ‘violently ill’ from taking part in the ‘chroming’ trend.
Mikayla Solomon says Teigan, 12, and one of her mates raided three homes to get their hands on five cans of deodorant to try out the social media challenge.
A young boy died last month after ‘chroming’, the dangerous trend that’s allegedly viral online.
Also known as huffing or sniffing, it involves the inhaling of toxic chemicals such as paint, solvent, aerosol cans, cleaning products or petrol. This effects the central nervous system and gives a brief ‘high’ as brain activity slows down.
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It can result in slurred speech, dizziness, hallucinations, nausea and disorientation but it can also cause a heart attack or suffocation.
Mikayla rushed her daughter to A&E in Kent earlier last month after she and her mate inhaled ‘five or six’ aerosol cans at a sleepover ‘for a laugh’.
The mum said: "I didn't really know what she had done but my older daughter said Teigan had inhaled deodorant. I didn't really have a clue what that meant.
"When I found out, I thought I need to get her to get checked. She apologised and said she just wanted to do it to make her laugh and didn't really think about the consequences.
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"She thought it would just make her and her friend laugh. She said her heart was doing palpitations."
Despite getting the all-clear from doctors, Teigan was apparently vomiting continuously for 12 days and her mum fears there may be long-term damage.
"Teigan really wasn't well after coming home. She was being sick constantly. She said she felt like everything was in slow motion and delayed,” Mikayla said.
"I didn't really know what to think - I didn't know if she was making it up. I told her she could've died. The doctors talked to her and I think it scared her.”
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The mum said she kept hearing her daughter ‘wheezing’ and was ‘burping sulphur-like burps’.
“I really do think it was linked to the deodorant cans,” she added. "We went back to A&E and they weren't sure what was wrong with her."
While Mikayla is ‘grateful’ that Teigan’s symptoms weren’t more severe, she is warning parents of the ‘dangerous’ challenge.
“She could've easily gone into cardiac arrest. I could've easily lost my daughter that day,” she said.
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The mum said the challenge is ‘terrifying’ and added that she’s heard it ‘can cause cognitive impairment and memory loss’.
Mikayla noted that her 12-year-old ‘shouldn’t really be on’ social media but all her friends are.
"So they're going to see these trends but [the platforms] need to crack down on it. Social media influences our children so much. Parents need to know the dangers,” she warned. "It's a really dangerous trend. If you think your child has done this, get them checked - it can cause long-term damage."
Topics: Social Media, Health, Viral, Parenting
Jess Battison