Child eggs-ploitation? Trend of parents cracking eggs on kids’ heads draws flak
In the latest example of egg-gregious parenting, some parents are cracking eggs on their toddlers’ heads and filming their upset reactions as part of a new TikTok trend.
While some kids gamely laughed off the prank, others were driven to tears or distressed yelling, sparking backlash from viewers and parenting experts, reported Insider.
Concerned TikTok users are now proposing a new trend: cracking eggs on one’s own head – a suggestion that spares the children but raises the troubling question of TikTok’s attachment to egg-cracking.
Innocent origins
The trend first appeared on the short-form video platform a few months ago, pioneered by women filming themselves cracking eggs on their distracted husbands’ or partners’ heads to jolt them out of their manly reveries.
The clips were accompanied by captions that gently poked fun at the men, like “When he thinks he’s useless in the kitchen”. Often, the victims reacted with shock, brief irritation or laughter.
The format quickly gained popularity, with more and more creators hopping on under the hashtag #eggcrackchallenge, which has since received 64 million views. Though some videos looked staged, comments remained positive as viewers enjoyed watching men get pranked, reported Insider.
A dark turn
Enthusiastic pranksters then cast their nets wider, going after other family members until children were pulled into the mix.
The unpredictable reactions of this vulnerable class drew more sympathy than amusement from viewers.
Commenters began to accuse parents of exploiting their children for views, reported Insider.
“Personally, I hate these types of trends. Kids are not props,” wrote @mom.uncharted/ on TikTok.
Experts began to weigh in, too. Podcaster Dr Kirsty Sommer, who has a PhD in child development and researches children’s early cognitive, social and emotional development at Griffith University in Australia, said parents likely did not realise how damaging this kind of behaviour could be.
People “probably don’t realise how hard an egg is”, she said.
A group of Texas-based paediatricians @thepedipals also made a video slamming the trend on TikTok.
“Maybe don’t be your child’s first bully and maybe lead by example? Maybe be the responsible loving adult?” they said.
The guilty parents may have been suitably chastened as most child-egging videos have since been deleted, reported Insider.
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