Defusing the “Benadryl challenge”: Discussing danger with teens – . Health Blog

Let's start with the bottom line: parents of teenagers need to help them understand that just because they have been “challenged” is not a good idea. But as simple as it sounds to us, many teenagers find it difficult to understand.

The latest challenge on the news is the "Benadryl Challenge," which was posted on TikTok, a popular social media video platform. The idea was to take a fair amount of Benadryl (diphenhydramine, a common antihistamine) to cause hallucinations. While it's true that diphenhydramine makes you high and hallucinating, if you ingest too much of it you can also have seizures, pass out, have heart problems, or even die. In fact, emergency rooms across the country have treated diphenhydramine overdoses, and at least one death has been attributed to the challenge.

Dangerous challenges appeal to young people

TikTok's credit is for taking the videos down and looking for new ones. When I searched the site myself, nothing came up when I searched for "Benadryl". It's not the only challenge on social media, however. We've had the Cinnamon Challenge, the Nutmeg Challenge, and others like the "Kiki Challenge," where people get out of their slow moving cars and dance next to them, or the "Skull Breaker Challenge," which speaks for itself. It is not really possible to get rid of all challenges. It's a punch in the mouth.

The reason teens do this stuff is because of evolutionary biology. The brains of adolescents and young adults grow and change rapidly to meet the needs of their respective moments in life. As adolescents grow up and become independent, they need to be able to learn a lot of information quickly. Your brain is designed to help you do this.

To grow up and become independent, you also have to be courageous and take risks. There is so much new and scary as you step into adulthood which is why many of us are glad we got this part of life behind us. The development of the adolescent brain takes this into account as well: the last part of the brain that develops is the prefrontal cortex, which helps us control our impulses and avoid risks. The process was completed in the mid-1920s.

Working with the adolescent brain

This does not mean that parents, teachers, and others should just raise their hands and stop talking to teenagers about making safer decisions. We have to try day after day. However, it does mean we need to understand why these challenges are so attractive and why teenagers may not fully appreciate the risks. This means that our efforts must not only be ongoing but also understanding. We have to work with the adolescent brain, not against it.

There is no easy way to do this. But here are some ideas:

• Listen as much as you speak. Ask questions. The more you know about their behavior, the greater the chance of finding strategies that work.
• Don't jump to judgment. Aside from the fact that they are wired to make impulsive and sometimes dangerous decisions, teens are less likely to listen to what you have to say when they feel judged.
• Try to get your teen to come up with ideas to keep him or her safe. Not only do they know themselves and their colleagues better than you, but they may also be more invested in an idea they come up with on their own.
• Ask for help. Teens don't always listen to parents, but they may listen to other adults in their lives. And anyway, if you feel like your child is doing dangerous things and you can't stop them, talk to your doctor.

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