A US teenager died of cardiac arrest after taking part in a social media challenge daring people to eat a single extremely hot tortilla chip, an autopsy revealed on Thursday (May 16).
Harris Wolobah, a 14-year-old from Massachusetts, died in September last year after taking part in the so-called “One Chip Challenge”. The challenge involved a single chip produced by Paqui, dusted with Carolina Reaper and Naga Viper peppers, two of the hottest peppers in the world.
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The dare has manifested in several iterations over the years, with the peppers changing each time.
The local chief medical examiner determined that Harris died of cardiac arrest after ingesting a food with a large amount of a chili pepper extract called capsaicin, said the autopsy report, seen by AFP.
The autopsy also concluded that the teen had an enlarged heart, which could have contributed to his death.
Days after his death, Paqui removed the product — packaged in a coffin-shaped box with a red skull and marked ‘extreme heat’ — from store shelves.
In California, three youths were hospitalized after taking part in the dare, and seven got sick in Minnesota for the same reason, according to media reports.