Doctors Say New 'Chocolate Snorting' Trend Could Have Deadly Consequences
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A growing trend of people snorting chocolate could cause serious harm to their health.
First, there was Four Loko -- an alcoholic energy drink that some kids just had to get their hands on -- then there was the fire challenge, where young people across the country poured flammable liquid on their bodies before setting themselves on fire for a thrill.
Now, as CBS2's Marc Liverman reported, there is Coco Loko -- a powder made up mostly of chocolate, that you snort.
"I've never heard this before, but yeah that's pretty scary," Parsa Keyvani said.
The product is available to order from the company's website, but it's not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
But that's not stopping people from snorting it and sharing their experiences through social media.
"Intuitively there's going to be more pulmonary problems, more asthma, more bronchitis, and more other issues, maybe even cancers," Dr. Jordan S. Josephson explained.
Dr. Josephson is a sinus specialist at Lennox Hill Hospital. He said there are no studies that look at the long term health risks of snorting chocolate, but the risks are there. Blocked sinuses can lead to snoring and sleep apnea, and that can be deadly.
"Sleep apnea leads to heart attacks and strokes," he explained.
Another concern is that powdered chocolate can easily be targeted to kids.
Dr. Josephson said the dangers of snorting chocolate are actually amplified when it comes to kids, and that's because their noses are smaller, and so are their sinuses.
"It's going to clog it up sooner because there's less space to deal with it," he said.
If you're going to have some chocolate, Dr. Josephson said skip the snorting and consume it the traditional way -- eat it instead.
CBS2 left a voicemail with Legal Lean -- the creators of Coco Loko -- but so far has not heard back.