A viral prank in which parents film themselves cracking an egg on their toddlers’ heads is taking over TikTok. But some medical experts say the laughs may not be worth the potential harmful effects the stunt could have on kids.
The videos, many of which use the hashtag #eggprank, typically show a parent with a young child in the kitchen. The parent takes a raw egg and tells the child they’re going to crack it — but rather than doing so in a pan or a bowl, they crack it on the child’s head before pouring the egg into a bowl or pan.
While the reactions from the children shown vary, many are seen crying or looking upset and stunned. In some instances, the child walks away, but other kids egg the parent back. The hashtag had more than 670.7 million views as of Tuesday.
The parents most likely see it as lighthearted fun. But in the comments of the videos and in video stitches, dozens of TikTok users have expressed concern that the children shown are being hurt or humiliated.
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Several medical experts told NBC News that while they don’t think the parents in the videos seem malicious, the prank could have unintended short-term effects, including bruising a child’s head or spreading germs from the egg.
It’s unclear where the prank originated. Some viral videos from earlier this month showed adults pranking other adults with the egg trend, one of which has more than 14 million views.
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