June 28th 2024.
Since the introduction of the internet, it has become increasingly common for children to have access to online content. However, this access has also brought about serious concerns for their safety and well-being. One such concern is the rising trend of children participating in dangerous online challenges.
Leigh Rose, a mother of a nine-year-old boy, experienced this first-hand when her son asked her where the Tide Pods were kept. As a brand of laundry liquid, Tide Pods gained notoriety due to an online challenge where children bite down on the colorful capsules, causing soap to pour from their mouths. While it may seem like harmless fun to children, this trend has proven to be extremely dangerous and has even resulted in deaths in the US.
Thankfully, Leigh was aware of this challenge and had already taken precautions to keep her laundry products locked away. However, this was not the first time she had felt a sense of alarm regarding her son's online activities. He had become obsessed with other challenges after being exposed to them while watching a seemingly innocent Peppa Pig episode on YouTube. One such challenge, known as the Momo challenge, claimed to trigger self-harm in children. Although later revealed to be a hoax, this did not stop Leigh's son from seeking out more challenges online.
Leigh's concerns are not unfounded, as an increasing number of children are causing harm to themselves after viewing inappropriate content online. In a report by the NSPCC, a 13-year-old shared their experience of being added to strange accounts on the social media platform TikTok. These accounts would ask them to participate in dangerous games, and if they refused, they would be threatened with harm to themselves and their families.
Tragically, there have been cases where these online challenges have gone too far. In March of this year, 11-year-old Tommie-lee Gracie Billington passed away after inhaling toxic substances during a sleepover with friends. This was linked to a social media trend called "chroming," where individuals inhale harmful chemicals for a supposed high. Similarly, a prank known as the "Angel of Death" challenge resulted in the deaths of two Indonesian teenagers in 2022.
Another heartbreaking case is that of 12-year-old Archie Battersbee, who died accidentally while participating in a "prank or experiment" that went wrong. His mother initially believed he was involved in online challenges, but the coroner could not confirm this. Parents of these children are now speaking out and raising awareness of the dangers of online content, including Ruth Moss, who lost her 13-year-old daughter after she was exposed to harmful material online.
Ellen Roome, another grieving parent, is also fighting for better protection for children online. Her 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney passed away two years ago, and she believes the answers to his death may lie in his social media accounts. However, she has been unable to obtain this data, and it remains a mystery. She urges for more caution and investigation when it comes to online challenges, stating that if this was a child who died from an illness, a post-mortem would be conducted to determine the cause.
Every parent's worst nightmare is their child getting hurt, and for Leigh Rose, that nightmare almost became a reality. When her nine-year-old son asked her where the Tide Pods were kept, she immediately felt a sense of alarm. For those unfamiliar, Tide Pods are a popular American brand of laundry liquid that have gained notoriety from an online challenge where kids bite into the colorful capsules and let soap pour out of their mouths. While it may seem like harmless fun to a child, it can actually be incredibly dangerous and has even caused deaths in the US.
Thankfully, Leigh was already aware of the Tide Pod challenge, which reportedly started as a joke in 2017, so she had already taken precautions to keep her laundry products out of reach. You see, her son is what we call "vulnerable" - someone who may be more easily influenced or tempted by online challenges. And this wasn't the first time Leigh had felt this rising sense of alarm. Her son, who she chooses not to name, had become obsessed with online challenges.
It all started when he was watching a Peppa Pig episode on YouTube and an advertisement for the "Momo challenge" appeared. This challenge, which was rumored to trigger young people into harming themselves, was later revealed to be a hoax. But for Leigh's thrill-seeking son, it was intriguing and led him to search for more challenges. "If he had gotten hold of one of those capsules, he definitely would have eaten it because that's what he had seen in those challenge videos," Leigh shared with Metro. "The way they are uploaded, it's done to be enticing, to look like it's fun and like everyone is doing it."
Leigh's worries are not unfounded, as an increasing number of children are causing serious harm to themselves after viewing inappropriate content online. In a report from the NSPCC, one 13-year-old shared their experience of being added to weird accounts on TikTok that threatened to hurt them and their family if they didn't participate in a game. This is just one example of the fear and pressure that young people may face when it comes to online challenges.
Tragically, there have also been cases where online "pranks" have gone too far. In March of this year, 11-year-old Tommie-lee Gracie Billington lost his life while participating in a social media challenge gone wrong. He lost consciousness after inhaling toxic substances during a sleepover with friends and later passed away in the hospital. His death was believed to be linked to a trend called "chroming," where young people inhale toxic chemicals for a thrill.
The dangers of online challenges are not limited to the US. In Indonesia, two teens were killed in 2022 while participating in the "Angel of Death" challenge, where they jump in front of a moving truck and only "win" if the truck stops. And in the UK, there was the heartbreaking case of 12-year-old Archie Battersbee, who died accidentally following a "prank or experiment" that went wrong. Though the coroner could not confirm that Archie was doing an online challenge at the time, his mother had initially believed that to be the case.
Grieving parents are now raising awareness of the dangers and calling for better protection for young people online. Ruth Moss, who lost her 13-year-old daughter after she was exposed to harmful content online, is fundraising for Childline. And Ellen Roome, whose 14-year-old son Jools Sweeney passed away two years ago, is fighting for better protection in parliament. Jools' death was ruled as accidental, but Ellen believes the answers may lie in his social media accounts, which she has been unable to access.
As a parent, Ellen feels frustrated that she doesn't have the right to see her child's social media after they have passed away. "People don't realize that as a parent of a child who's died, you don't have a right to see their social media, and I am just shocked by that," she shared. "I have no idea why my son took his life. The coroner didn't rule it was suicide and there was no one else involved. They couldn't prove he was in a suicidal mood."
Ellen has gone through her son's texts, WhatsApps, photos, and videos, but has found nothing conclusive. Less than two hours before his death, her Ring doorbell captured Jools happily saying goodbye to his best friend, which makes her doubt that he was feeling down. She believes that if this was a child who died from an illness, a post mortem would be done to determine the cause. But for her son, who may have been influenced by online challenges, there is no clear answer.
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