A mother has described how her daughter suffered agonizing burns after accidentally microwaving ‘prison napalm’ while trying to follow a TikTok recipe for Chinese candied fruit snack Tanghulu.
Emma-Louise Owen claims the food challenge seen on TikTok could have left her daughter scarred for life.
She is warning other parents about the dangers of the ‘Tanghulu challenge’ after her daughter Sophie-Rosie, 12, was left with burn blisters due to the madness.
It involves heating sugar and water to make a sugar syrup, which is then glazed over fruit skewers before being dipped in cold water to create a hard, crunchy surface.
But the result was a mixture of boiling water and sugar, known as “prison napalm,” which prisoners often use as a weapon.
Sophie-Rosie, 12, suffered agonizing burns after accidentally making ‘prison napalm’
Her mother took Sophie to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, where doctors told the family they were “lucky” the burns were not more serious (pictured: Sophie with bandages).
The deadly liquid adheres to the skin and intensifies burns, one of the main effects of gelatinous napalm bombs.
According to the National Library of Medicine, ‘prison napalm’ attacks will cause more severe burns than using tap water and the incidents can be ‘potentially devastating’.
Mrs Owen said her daughter asked her if she could take part in the Tanghulu challenge last month after spotting the trend on TikTok.
The 34-year-old agreed because she had also seen the trend on other social media platforms and warned Sophie to be careful, but she soon heard a piercing scream coming from the kitchen.
Mrs Owen, who lives in Cardiff, Wales, said her daughter had heated the syrup using a plastic jug in the microwave, but the scalding hot sauce had melted through the container onto Sophie’s foot and hand.
The boiling hot chutney had melted through the container (pictured) onto Sophie’s foot and hand.
Sophie-Rosie was hospitalized with horrific burns after attempting the challenge
Mrs Owen (pictured) claims the challenge seen on TikTok could have left her daughter scarred for life.
The mother-of-two immersed Sophie’s foot and hand in cold water and noticed huge blisters appearing on the young woman’s skin.
Worried, Emma took Sophie to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, where doctors told the family they were “lucky” the burns were not more serious.
Mrs Owen, the insurance officer, is grateful her daughter was not blinded by the scorching liquid and warns other parents about the viral madness.
TikTok said Tanghulu is a popular Asian version of a sugar syrup-based sweet and said recipes proliferated online before its platform.
The social media giant claimed that making Tanghulu is no more dangerous than cooking any other food at high temperatures, but said its platform was only for children over 13 years old.
The family was told the injuries (pictured), which left several scars, could have been “much worse”.
Insurance officer Mrs Owen is grateful her daughter has not been blinded by the scorching liquid and is warning other parents about the viral madness (pictured: some of the blisters on Sophie-Rose’s foot).
Mrs Owen said: “Sophie had seen this new trend on TikTok – all her friends were doing it.”
‘I had seen it on social media, celebrities had been doing it and it looked good. He knew that it was a new trend that was doing the rounds where people were staring.
‘She approached me on a Friday night and asked if I could do this Tanghulu trend. I said no, you’re not using the oven. But she said there’s this video that shows you can do it in the microwave.
‘At that point my mom called me and I said yes, you can do it in the microwave, just be careful. I didn’t understand the real context and I feel like a terrible parent.
‘He put the sugar and water in a microwave-safe plastic jug for two minutes and, when he took it out, the syrup had burned to the bottom of the jug, dripping onto his hand and foot.
‘There was a trace of syrup on the kitchen floor. She was shouting ‘burn, burn, burn’ and I told her ‘put your hand in cold water’. Then, instantly a huge blister formed on her foot.
‘I grabbed a bucket and put his foot in it with cold water while I ran my hand under the tap. My husband came down and I told him that he had done this trend with sugar water and his face fell off.
‘He said this is what they use in prisons to mark people. Her foot just swelled up. She had a large lump and then small burns where she had splashed her foot.
‘He had a blister on the palm of his hand and a large bubble on his index finger. She had calmed down, but every now and then she felt a stab of pain and broke down.
After calling 111, Mrs Owen took her daughter to hospital, where burn specialists had to burst the multiple blisters that had appeared on Sophie’s hand and foot.
The family were told Sophie’s injuries, which left her with several scars, could have been “much worse”.
She said: ‘We were told it could have been much worse. Because we acted so quickly and kept it under water for so long, we kind of killed the burns.
‘It could have easily been splashed on her face and she would have had scars all over her face or she would have been blinded. She now she has scars from this.
‘There are no warnings on social media about this challenge, such as be careful with symbols and make sure there is an adult with you.
The mother of two immersed Sophie-Rose’s foot and hand in cold water and noticed huge blisters appearing on the young woman’s skin (pictured: the bandaged 12-year-old girl)
‘Kids just absorb everything online. This could have been much worse. I wanted other parents to know the dangers of this. I don’t want this to happen to someone else’s child.
“You can’t watch your kids 24/7, but be aware of what they’re doing.”
A TikTok spokesperson explained that candied fruit recipes have been on the internet for years before their platform, including on cooking shows and popular recipe platforms.
They explained that Tanghulu is a popular Asian version of a sugar syrup-based sweet and stated that preparing it is no more dangerous than cooking any other food at high temperatures.
The spokesperson emphasized that cooking and recipe videos are welcome on TikTok, but stressed that it was strictly a 13+ platform.
To help prevent people from using the platform if they are not yet old enough, TikTok stated that they have designed an industry-standard, age-neutral gate that requires people to fill in their full date of birth instead of allowing them to select whether They are old enough. minors or over 13 years of age.
They claimed this would discourage children from lying about their age.