Paqui, the maker of extremely spicy tortilla chips marketed as the “One Chip Challenge,” is voluntarily pulling the product from shelves after a woman said her teenage son died of complications from consuming a single chip.

The chips were sold individually, and their seasoning included two of the hottest peppers in the world: the Carolina Reaper and the Naga Viper.

Each chip was packaged in a coffin-shaped container with a skull on the front.

Lois Wolobah told NBC Boston that her 14-year-old son, Harris Wolobah, ate the chip Friday, then went to the school nurse with a stomachache. Wolobah said Harris — a sophomore at Doherty Memorial High School in Worcester, Massachusetts — passed out at home that afternoon. He was pronounced dead at the hospital later that day, she said.

Until sales of the product were suspended, Paqui’s marketing dared people to participate in the challenge by eating a chip, posting pictures of their tongues on social media after the chip turned it blue and then waiting as long as possible to relieve the burn with water or other food.

The challenge has existed in some form since 2016.

  • hesusingthespiritbomb@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    People are calling this kid stupid. I disagree.

    Nobody buying food in America would think that a single serving product would be able to kill you without any sort of prior health conditions. This is a completely fair assumption and one that is important.

    Second, the one chip challenge has been in the public eye for a while. There are multiple examples of people eating them successfully in previous years. When things do go badly, it’s usually something along the lines of “I threw up everywhere”. That’s a far cry from dying and along the lines of risks teenagers have taken for decades.

    Third, a ton of food items use the skull and crossbones motif. I’ve seen it on hot sauces that aren’t even that spicy. Nobody assumes that the skull and crossbones means risking death. This is, again, because everyone assumes that food is generally safe to eat.

    In conclusion, don’t sell things in convenience stores that can kill an otherwise healthy person in short order. While this is especially true for children, it’s a good rule of thumb in general.

    • Roboticide@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      The chip has been safe to eat for millions of people for years.

      Capsaicin consumed orally isn’t fatal. This kid probably has some other underlying health problems he was simply not aware of, but it’s not like it’s an inherently lethal product. If a kid with an unknown peanut allergy eats and dies from a Snickers, it’s not like Snickers are actually a lethal food.

      It does say it’s intended for adults only, but that’s hardly ever stopped teenagers from doing anything ever. It’s probably good they pulled it temporarily, but the real answer here is probably simply “Don’t sell this to minors.”

      • joel_feila@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        there is also the possibility that the ship was contaminated with some at the factory. Maybe a cleaning chemical got in the chip

    • SnowdenHeroOfOurTime@unilem.org
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      1 year ago

      Why are people taking it for granted that peppers can kill you? They almost never, if ever, do. No, they can’t, in a practical sense, and it’s very weird you’re immediately ready to believe that they do

      • Lafuma300@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Do you know anything about nightshades? Cause they’ve been killing people for thousands of years.

        • SnowdenHeroOfOurTime@unilem.org
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          1 year ago

          Confidently incorrect I see. How many people died from tomatoes / peppers since written history began? I’m guessing approximately zero.

          “Theoretically, one could eat enough really hot chiles to kill you,” he says. “A research study in 1980 calculated that three pounds of extreme chilies in powder form — of something like the Bhut Jolokia — eaten all at once could kill a 150-pound person.”

          So yeah probably the same number of people who died of a weed overdose. Another thing that is technically possible.

        • elscallr@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          The “nightshades” in this product are most likely tomatoes, not the deadly nightshades you’re thinking of.

            • Classy@sh.itjust.works
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              1 year ago

              Mostly because anything that actually has a significant amount of solanine in it, like tomato greens, or datura leaves, or bittersweet nightshade berries, tastes like absolute crap and you would have to force yourself to eat it to poisoning.