On July 17, 2025, 13-year-old Lucas Howson from Lincolnshire, UK, was hospitalized after attempting the perilous "tap out" challenge, a viral trend on social media platforms like TikTok. The challenge involves placing someone in a chokehold until they nearly lose consciousness and tap out for the next person to join in the game chain.
During the incident, Lucas collapsed and bit through three-quarters of his tongue. He remained unconscious for approximately 20 seconds and experienced temporary amnesia due to oxygen deprivation. Thankfully, Lucas has made a full recovery.
Lucas's mother, Amy Howson, expressed her concern over the incident:
Amy recalled, "I got a phone call from my sister who's the same age as Lucas and she said that Luca had been in a fight... She said Lucas is on the floor, unconscious and he's all cut up."
When Amy reached the park, she found her son Lucas covered in blood and unable to remember what had happened to him.
"He said, 'We always do it. Everyone's doing it around school.'" She emphasized the importance of monitoring social media content to prevent exposure to dangerous trends among adolescents.
The "tap out" challenge is a variant of the "choking game," linked to serious injuries and fatalities. The research paper Choking Games: A Dangerous Trend Among Adolescents mentioned that these activities can lead to brain injury, seizures, or death¹.
The research paper "Choking Game" Awareness and Participation Among 8th Graders mentioned that adolescent participation is more common than parents realize. ²
The research paper Brain Injury and Risk-Taking in Teens mentioned that peer encouragement significantly increases the risk of severe outcomes³.
Experts warn that these challenges can spread rapidly on social media, normalizing risky behavior. The research paper Digital Peer Pressure and Risk-Taking in Teens mentioned that online trends strongly influence adolescents’ willingness to engage in dangerous activities⁴.
The Blue Whale game, Benadryl challenge, Tap out challenge, Outlet challenge and Nyquil chicken challenge are few of such dangerous trends on Tiktok.
The research paper Preventing Risk-Taking Behavior in Adolescents mentioned that awareness campaigns, education, and parental supervision are critical to reducing risk. ⁵
Lucas Howson’s experience is a stark reminder of the dangers posed by viral challenges. Parents, educators, and social media platforms must collaborate to prevent the spread of such trends.
Early intervention, education on social media risks, and supervision are essential to protect young individuals. Even seemingly harmless games can quickly escalate into life-threatening emergencies.
Choking Games: A Dangerous Trend Among Adolescents. PubMed Central. Accessed September 10, 2025. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4839780/
"Choking Game" Awareness and Participation Among 8th Graders. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Accessed September 10, 2025. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5901a1.htm
Brain Injury and Risk-Taking in Teens. Journal of Pediatrics. Accessed September 10, 2025. https://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(09)01040-3/fulltext
Digital Peer Pressure and Risk-Taking in Teens. Journal of Adolescent Health. Accessed September 10, 2025. https://www.jahonline.org/article/S1054-139X(15)00351-0/fulltext
Preventing Risk-Taking Behavior in Adolescents. Pediatrics. Accessed September 10, 2025. https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/143/2/e20173963/37336/Adolescent-Mental-Health-and-the-Choking-Game
(Rh/Eth/ARC/MSM)