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Zoom Challenge Brings Worries Of Head Injuries For Teens

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A dangerous new trend is putting kids at major risk.

Medical experts are warning against the Zoom Challenge. The objective of the prank is to record someone quickly being yanked by their feet, out of the camera's frame.

"I have a brother and I would never do that to him," said one teen.

Siblings and parents of young children across the country are taking the Zoom Challenge. They record themselves sitting on the ground dancing to rapper Lil' Yachty's song, "Mickey."

When the rapper says "zoom" in his track, the kids captured on video are then yanked by their feet, and disappear from the camera's frame.

"You can hear it banging against the floor; it's just scary," said another teen.

Some say the game has been blown out of proportion.

"In the regular Zoom, people jump through the camera, I don't know why people Zoom, that's how I did it, I ran past the camera," said Jakayla Frazier.

Another teen says it's safe if you're not yanked aggressively.

"I wanna do it, 'cause I feel like nobody can pull me that hard."

"There's just nothing you can potentially do to prepare yourself from preventing hitting your head," said Dr. Brian Davis.

Davis is a sports medicine professor with UC Davis, who says the challenge is dangerous, period.

"The violent nature with which the head is being thrown backward and either hitting the ground or even if it doesn't hit the ground, if there's enough momentum or enough rotation or shift that in and of itself can cause a concussion," Davis added.

That's not the only risk kids run, Davis says. Neck and spinal injuries, even broken bones are possible when a child is yanked swiftly and with force.

"It can certainly lead to problems with your mental thinking, lead to issues with how you perform in school," he added.

One student-athlete knows all too well, about the effects of head injuries, and warns kids to pull the brakes on the Zoom Challenge.

"The ground is going to win against the kid every single time," Sharef Beckum said.

Some symptoms to watch out for include headache nausea, vomiting and loss of balance.

CBS13 reached out to local hospitals Wednesday, so far there have been no reports of injuries from the Zoom Challenge.

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