A tortilla chip maker含羞草研究社檚 decision to pull its extremely spicy product sold as a 含羞草研究社淥ne Chip Challenge含羞草研究社� from store shelves following the has renewed attention on the popularity 含羞草研究社� and risks 含羞草研究社� of similar dares marketed by brands and spread widely online.

Spicy food challenges have been around for years. From local chile pepper eating contests to restaurant walls of fame for those who finished extra hot dishes, people around the world have been daring each other to eat especially fiery foods, with some experts pointing to the internal rush of competition and risk-taking.

But extremely spicy products created and marketed solely for the challenges 含羞草研究社� and possible internet fame 含羞草研究社� is a more recent phenomenon, and teens are particularly exposed to them because of social media, associate professor of psychology at Florida International University Elisa Trucco says.

There含羞草研究社檚 a 含羞草研究社済lamorization of these challenges on social media,含羞草研究社� Trucco said. 含羞草研究社淵ou see a lot of 含羞草研究社榣ikes含羞草研究社� or comments (indicating) social status or popularity from these challenges, but you don含羞草研究社檛 see a lot of the negative consequences 含羞草研究社� like the trips to the E.R. or other injuries.含羞草研究社�

Alexander DePaoli, an associate teaching professor of marketing at Northeastern University, added that people may put themselves through discomfort and share it online for a sense of 含羞草研究社渋n-group belonging,含羞草研究社� similar to offline challenges as a game of truth or dare.

A YouTube series called 含羞草研究社淗ot Ones,含羞草研究社� for example, rose to internet fame several years ago with videos of celebrities含羞草研究社� reactions to eating spicy wings. Meanwhile, restaurants nationwide continue to offer in-person challenges 含羞草研究社� from Buffalo Wild Wings含羞草研究社� 含羞草研究社淏lazin含羞草研究社� Challenge含羞草研究社� to the 含羞草研究社淗ell Challenge含羞草研究社� of Wing King in Las Vegas. In both challenges, patrons over 18 can attempt to eat a certain amount of wings doused in extra hot sauce in limited time without drinking or eating other food.

Chile pepper eating contests are also regularly hosted around the world. Last year, Gregory Foster ate 10 Carolina Reaper chillies, which Guinness World Records has named the hottest in the world, at a record time of 33.15 seconds in San Diego, California.

In most cases, people will choose to participate in challenges that they are trained for or don含羞草研究社檛 consider to be truly dangerous. But a line is crossed when someone gets hurt, DePaoli noted.

While for 10th-grader Harris Wolobah are still pending, the teen含羞草研究社檚 family allege that the One Chip Challenge is responsible for his Sept. 1 death. The product, manufactured by Paqui, instructs participants to eat an eponymously named chip and then see how long they can go without consuming other food and water.

Sales of the chip seem largely driven by people posting videos on social media of them or their friends taking the challenge. They show people, including teens and children, eating the chips and then reacting to the heat. Some videos show people gagging, coughing and begging for water.

Since Wolobah含羞草研究社檚 death, Paqui has asked retailers to stop selling the product and some health experts have pointed to potential dangers of eating such spicy products under certain circumstances, particularly depending on the amount of capsaicin, a component that gives chile peppers their heat.

But there are plenty of similar products that remain online and on store shelves, including Red Hot Reaper含羞草研究社檚 One Chip Challenge, Blazing Foods含羞草研究社� Death Nut Challenge and Tube of Terror Challenge as well as Wilder Toys含羞草研究社� Hot Ones Truth or Dab sauce game. The Associated Press reached out to each company after Paqui pulled its own product, but did not receive a response.

DePaoli said it含羞草研究社檚 not unusual for companies to engage in viral marketing.

含羞草研究社淚t is unusual, however, to have something where the brand actually wants you to put something into your body,含羞草研究社� he said. Companies 含羞草研究社渄on含羞草研究社檛 want to be liable for that.含羞草研究社�

Despite warnings or labels specifying adult-use only, the products can still get into the hands of young people who might not understand the risks, Trucco added.

含羞草研究社淭here含羞草研究社檚 a reason why these challenges are appealing,含羞草研究社� she said. 含羞草研究社淭his type of marketing sells.含羞草研究社�

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