No, you actually did not wake up in a new Bugatti, but you now have a concussion and an urgent care bill. TikTok is a fun social media app with goofy videos to bond with friends over, but the popularity of seemingly innocent social challenge videos has become concerning from a safety perspective. We hate to sound like a whiny grandma who doesn’t know how to work her new iPhone, but so be it when it comes to well-being and avoiding interferences to the body’s nervous system.

Some of these challenge videos encourage people, often children with developing critical thinking skills, to perform actions that can actually cause injury. Parents, in particular, need to be aware of what their kids are watching and consider blocking them from certain sites. Additionally, it’s not advised for children to be allowed to post videos they produce themselves in order to discourage participation in dangerous challenges as well as avoid privacy issues.

There have been countless social media trends that are obviously harmful, as shock value is kind of the point. These might include ingesting harmful substances, painful pranks, vandalism and the like. Yet, there are many widespread social media trends, particularly on TikTok, that are just seemingly innocent enough that even cautious people may try it, and that can lead to a higher chance of widespread injuries.

Moreover, that could lead up to the perfect storm example of such an innocent looking challenge: The Bugatti Challenge. If you are on social media scrolling for any length of time, you have mostly likely seen a few of these videos that, on the surface, seem super fun. It’s an easy-to-replicate setup, with the upbeat soundtrack that opens with “I woke up in my new Bugatti.” The featured person on the screen pretends like they are starting up their expensive sportscar while someone offscreen pulls their legs fast to simulate they are speeding off down the road.

See an example here:

 

Adorable, good-natured fun that people of all ages can participate in, right? Not quite. The featured person in the video is often on a smooth, hard surface and pulled as fast as the friend off-screen can manage. This creates two glaring possibilities for injury to participants. The first is when the person on screen is pulled so hard that their head can whip back and smack the floor, an obvious recipe for whiplash, as well as the chance of head injury and even concussions. Then, there is danger for the “puller” off screen as well, especially for those that strain under too much weight to pull, as seen in the laughed-off failures that are part of the trend. In extreme cases, this strain can result in musculoskeletal issues, compounded by the number of attempts of the dubious move.  All in all, it’s a trend that is probably best left alone.

TikTok is rife with other trends that are a cause for concern, even those claiming to promote a healthy lifestyle. There was a back crack challenge that encouraged people to try different back cracking techniques at home, which is not only dangerous but also has no scientific basis of doing any actual good. Some participants in the challenge claimed it helped their back pain tremendously, but the risks of do-it-yourself extreme back manipulation are far too great, potentially putting stress on ligaments, pinching a nerve or throwing limbs out of joint. Licensed chiropractors focus on specific and targeted areas of misalignment and provide correction as needed, rather than performing ill-advised internet poses.

All in all, whether you are 9 or 99, peer pressure or the desire to simply fit into what “everyone else is doing” is a very strong force that social media magnifies to the tenth degree. Before participating in any social media trend, you need to evaluate, at least on a basic level, if that trend could have dangerous repercussions. Happy safe scrolling!