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Some challenges popular on the social media site TikTok are putting people at risk of eye damage, including blindness, according to an eye expert from Guernsey firm Specsavers.
Dr Nigel Best, an optometrist, is warning people not to take part in trending challenges which expose their eyes to bright lights and toxic substances.
One of the challenges circulating on TikTok sees people mixing bleach, hand sanitiser, jelly and shaving cream in a bag and holding it up to their eyes. It is claimed this will make eyes appear brighter, but this is not the case.
Dr Best said: “These challenges can be extremely dangerous and can put your eye health at risk. It really isn’t worth jeopardising your sight for a sake of a few likes and shares on social media.
“Simply don’t do it. Apart from the fact that it won’t make your eyes any brighter, if the bag splits and the contents leak out it could cause corneal scarring, extreme pain and blindness.”
Pictured: The hoax challenge encourages users to change the brightness of their eyes by holding a bag of toxic substances against their face.
Another viral challenge sees users trying to change their eye colour from brown to blue by exposing the eyes to bright light while using the S5 filter on their phones.
Dr Best said this could also lead to permanent damage.
@jonashaestad Dont mind my lip scar #fyp #s5filter ♬ original sound - Becky Craycraft
Pictured: Participants have been shining bright phone torches into their eyes.
“When exposed to bright lights, we would naturally avert our eyes and our pupils would constrict. These two actions will reduce the amount of potentially harmful light falling on the retina,” said Dr Best.
“By intentionally exposing your retinas to bright lights, you risk permanently damaging the light sensitive cells on your retina and causing blind spots.”
@jacob_rtt don’t try this at home ???? #viral#fy#fyp#foryou#trend#fun#elevatorboys ♬ sonido original - .
Pictured: Damage to eye muscles is associated with the so-called finger eye challenge.
The ‘finger eye challenge’ is another viral trend which experts fear could cause damage.
It involves someone holding their finger over one eye while looking towards that finger with the opposite eye. Videos see individuals holding it in place for 10-15 seconds before moving their finger, resulting in the eyes temporarily pointing in different directions.
Dr Best said that each eye has six muscles which control their movement and that only one of these muscles needs to be damaged to run the risk of a squint and double vision.
“Optometrists will sometimes use tests similar to the finger challenge to test the strength of the eye muscles but in a very controlled and safe way," he said.
"We would advise against people carrying out these tests on themselves as it could result in eye strain and temporary double vision."
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