DENVER (KDVR) — Since 2020, at least two teenagers in the United States have died participating in a social media trend, the Benadryl challenge. This week, a Denver high school warned parents they’ve seen the trend start to resurface.
East High School sent out a letter to parents on Monday afternoon saying they’ve seen the Benadryl challenge, which has been around since 2020, ramp up on social media recently. The trend involves taking far more than the recommended dose of Benadryl to cause hallucinations, and doctors said that can have some serious side effects.
National Jewish Health allergy physician Dr. Jessica Hui said she’s even moved away from the medicine.
“To be honest, actually low doses of Benadryl — you can also have side effects, which is why even in the allergy world we are moving away from Benadryl as emergency treatment,” Hui said.
Which is why she said no one should ever do the social media trend, and that one side effect is what teens are looking for.
“You can have a lot of neurological manifestations. Delirium, extreme drowsiness, even seizures,” Hui said.
Hallucinations are the goal, but far from the only side effect. Increased heart rate, irregular heartbeats, vomiting, and even worse are all possible.
“It can lead to coma or even death,” Hui said.
Side effects may appear at different doses for different people, making the challenge even more dangerous and unpredictable.
“Every patient is going to have a different threshold of what they’re able to tolerate,” Hui said.
She encourages parents to keep their Benadryl out of easily accessible reach and to have a talk with their kids about the dangers.
“Just don’t do these challenges, don’t take more than what is recommended,” Hui said.
Hui said to call 911 and Poison Control immediately if you think your kid has taken too much Benadryl. Denver Public Schools also encourages reaching out to its Substance Use Prevention team if you have any questions.
