Why doctors are issuing warnings over viral Milk Crate Challenge

Hospitals reporting fractured ribs and broken bones as result of dangerous TikTok dare

Person participating in the milk crate challenge
(Image credit: Twitter/@iTweetBrando)

Social media challenges are known for being bizarre, from the Planking Challenge where participants lie face-down in a busy or unusual area, to the Mannequin Challenge, where a group of people pose frozen like statues as a camera moves between them. But the latest challenge to go viral on social media is not just bizarre – it’s dangerous, say doctors.

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Kate Samuelson is the newsletter editor, global. She is also a regular guest on award-winning podcast The Week Unwrapped, where she often brings stories with a women’s rights angle. Kate’s career as a journalist began on the MailOnline graduate training scheme, which involved stints as a reporter at the South West News Service’s office in Cambridge and the Liverpool Echo. She moved from MailOnline to Time magazine’s satellite office in London, where she covered current affairs and culture for both the print mag and website. Before joining The Week, Kate worked as the senior stories and content gathering specialist at the global women’s charity ActionAid UK, where she led the planning and delivery of all content gathering trips, from Bangladesh to Brazil. She is passionate about women’s rights and using her skills as a journalist to highlight underrepresented communities.

Alongside her staff roles, Kate has written for various magazines and newspapers including Stylist, Metro.co.uk, The Guardian and the i news site. She is also the founder and editor of Cheapskate London, an award-winning weekly newsletter that curates the best free events with the aim of making the capital more accessible.