Squid Game honeycomb challenge leads to spate of teen burn victims

Doctors are warning parents that children who try the honeycomb challenge from Netflix hit Squid Game are landing in hospital with horrific burns. WARNING: GRAPHIC PICTURES

Squid Game-inspired injuries have been reported all over the world in the wake of the hit Netflix series — and now one challenge has put three Sydney kids in the burns unit at the Children’s Hospital Westmead.

Unlike playground injuries caused overseas by playing the actual “squid game”, doctors are warning the “honeycomb challenge” is now a threat.

The Squid Game honeycomb challenge seems innocent enough …

… but the boiling-hot mixture has put three Sydney children in hospital.

The challenge is to make a thin sheet of honeycomb and cut out a shape without breaking it. This has gone viral on TikTok and Google searches for “honeycomb recipe” are soaring, but while it seems innocent enough, young children and boiling sugar are not a good mix.

Ryde 14-year-old Aiden Higgie was bored in lockdown on the October long weekend when he decided he would try it.

He ended up with third degree burns on his legs after he melted sugar in a non-microwave safe cup, it exploded and spilt down his leg.

Helen Higgie and her son Aiden, 14, who received third degree burns to his leg. Picture: Tim Hunter

His mother Helen Higgie was horrified.

“A lot of kids his age are watching Squid Game, it’s very popular and Aiden was trying to recreate the honeycomb with the imprint on it, he looked it up on Tiktok on how to create it,” she said.

“He used water, bicarb of soda and sugar and he did it in a plastic cup.

“A lot of the cups we have at home are microwavable, but some aren’t and kids really can’t tell the difference.

“I was in another room when he did it. It boiled up to a ridiculous temperature, and when he took the cup out it exploded in his hand.

“It has burnt his hand, and because it was sugar and plastic melted together, it has run down his leg from his knee down to his shin and it stuck and kept on burning and burning and burning.

“It was like toffee and burnt right through to the nerves.

“At the burn unit, his hands are OK because they were first degree burns but his leg is third degree burns and we are still trying to work out whether to do skin grafts or not.

“At the moment we are there every few days doing dressings because the burn is so thick.

“It is a very slow process.”

Aiden Higgie also burnt his hand …

… while undertaking the challenge.

Aiden said the challenge was popular in his age group.

“I just saw it all over the internet and wanted to try it and I was bored. Some of my friends have done it too, but I’d say don’t do it or make sure your parents are with you,” he said.

Aiden will have to wear a pressure bandage for a year as the skin heals.

“Every kid I know in Aiden’s cohort is doing the same thing and it doesn’t take long for an accident like this to happen,” Ms Higgie said.

Dr Erik La Hei, acting Head of Burns at Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network, said in addition to the three cases at Westmead, he had heard of several others.

The teenager, now forced to wear a bandage on his leg for a year, advised other children to get help if making the honeycomb. Picture: Tim Hunter

“We’ve had three cases here and from my colleagues I’ve heard of one in Perth and one in Melbourne as well,” he said.

“We are not against kids cooking or making honeycomb.

“But molten sugar is much hotter than boiling water and it makes for a very deep burn almost instantaneously, it’s quite dangerous.”

Aiden Higgie received third degree burns as the sugar and plastic burnt into his skin.

Dr La Hei said it was good for kids to learn how to work in the kitchen and said the first aid in the case of such a burn was to run it under cool water.

“If you spill something like that on you, just put it completely under cool running water straight away,” he said.

“It will continue to burn as (long as) it remains hot and as soon as you can take the temperature out, it will stop the burning process.”

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