Social media users taking part in ‘TikTok challenges’ on the popular video sharing app could be risking their sight, said Specsavers optometrist Nigel Best.
The viral trends that could be risking participants’ sight include one ‘challenge’ where bleach, hand sanitiser, jelly and shaving cream are mixed in a bag and then held up to the eyes in an attempt to lighten them.
Another involved an attempt to change the participant’s eye colour from brown to blue on video by recording from a close distance with a smartphone’s torch turned on, and then applying a specific filter. A video posted demonstrating how to do this received over 11,000 likes and received one comment that said: ‘Girl I went blind, and it still doesn’t work.’
Best said: ‘When exposed to bright lights we would naturally avert our eyes and our pupils would constrict. By intentionally exposing your retinas to bright lights, you risk permanently damaging the light sensitive cells on your retina and causing blind spots.’