BOSTON — Kids are up to all kinds of things these days.
One of the most shocking and puzzling new trends in the online world has been dubbed as the "Tide Pod Challenge."
In the bizarre challenge, kids from all across the country are recording themselves putting Tide Pods in their mouths and popping them.
However, as most of us who know not to put laundry detergent pods in our mouths, invariably this can go extremely wrong.
Tide then turned to one of their brand ambassadors kids would actually listen to - Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.
In a hilarious PSA, Gronk tells teens to stop partaking in the dangerous social media challenge and to use the laundry detergent pods only for washing your clothes.
What should Tide PODs be used for? DOING LAUNDRY. Nothing else.
— Tide (@tide) January 12, 2018
Eating a Tide POD is a BAD IDEA, and we asked our friend @robgronkowski to help explain. pic.twitter.com/0JnFdhnsWZ
"What the heck is going on people? Use Tide Pods for washing, not eating," Gronk says in the short video.
According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, in 2017, more than 10,500 exposures to highly concentrated laundry detergents by children of ages five or younger were reported.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says that six adults with cognitive impairment and two children have died as a result of ingesting the laundry pacs.
In response to the challenge, Tide's parent company Procter & Gamble, issued a statement:
"Our laundry pacs are a highly concentrated detergent meant to clean clothes and they're used safely in millions of households every day. They should be only used to clean clothes and kept up, closed and away from children. They should not be played with, whatever the circumstance is, even if meant as a joke."
Following the Tide Pod Challenge, memes have popped up all over social media where Tide Pods are depicted as food inside bowls, plates and frying pans. A social media user even came up with an edible Tide Pod recipe.
I’ve partnered with @Tide to make sure you know, Tide PODs are for doing laundry. Nothing else! https://t.co/Oo7n7ZZpbG
— Rob Gronkowski (@RobGronkowski) January 13, 2018
Here's to hoping kids will actually listen to their role models in 2018, or that at least this trend dies down quickly.
Cox Media Group