Dangerous Trend Among Children Online: Ombudsman Gave Advice to Parents.

A new dangerous flash mob is becoming popular on social networks - children are filming themselves as they inhale fumes of poisonous substances. This can negatively affect their health and lives. This was reported by Dmytro Lubinets, Commissioner for Human Rights.

To prevent the spread of this dangerous trend, he appealed to the National Police about the situation and asked them to take appropriate measures.

Lubinets urged parents to be attentive to the dangers that may threaten their children on the Internet and to be conscious of cyber threats.

«The more children know about the risks, the better they are protected, particularly from manipulations, cyberbullying, and dangerous online trends», - noted Lubinets.

The latest research presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics conference showed an alarming trend: videos about "chroming" - inhaling fumes of poisonous substances - are rapidly spreading on TikTok and attracting the attention of minors.

Chroming, also known as "huffing", includes inhaling toxic substances from various household items such as nail polish removers, permanent markers, aerosol deodorants. This leads to a short-term euphoric state but has serious health consequences, including brain, heart, lung, kidney, and other organ damage. Additionally, chroming can cause addiction and even death.

Researchers analyzed 109 videos with hashtags #huffing and #chroming on TikTok, which gained over 25 million views. It turned out that 39% of authors of such videos are minors. This is a serious concern, as teenagers are particularly vulnerable to the influence of social media and dangerous trends.