The number of teens eating Tide Pods is skyrocketing

Brace yourselves: there has been an embarrassing uptick in the number of teens eating Tide Pods.

With a "HIGH ALERT," the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) shared an urgent press release on the current state of Tide Pod consumption in the United States.

"Last week, AAPCC reported that during the first two weeks of 2018, the country’s poison control centers handled thirty-nine intentional exposures cases among thirteen to nineteen year olds," the report read.

That number didn't last long, however. "That number has increased to eighty-six such intentional cases among the same age demographic during the first three weeks of 2018."

TEENS, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?

"We cannot stress enough how dangerous this is to the health of individuals—it can lead to seizure, pulmonary edema, respiratory arrest, coma, and even death," Stephen Kaminski, AAPCC’s CEO and Executive Director, wrote.

Once again, this is not a joke. Do not eat the Tide pods.

This increase comes on the heels of massive efforts from Proctor & Gamble, the producer of Tide Pods, to slow the roll of this horrible trend. They've partnered with YouTube to remove videos of kids eating Tide Pods, and Amazon has removed those commenting online about how delicious the forbidden fruit is. Additionally, P&G released a statement to warn consumers and hired New England Patriots' Rob Gronkowski to spread the word.

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If you still feel the urge to eat one, or know someone who is going through an unfortunate Tide Pod phase themselves, take a note from AAPCC's statement and call Poison Help hotline at 1-800-222-1222 or text Poison to 797979.