Children’s Ministry and Culture

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23166041/

A new government study confirms 82 youth and preteen deaths in a dangerous choking game in which “the self-induced strangulation claimed mostly pre-teen and teenage boys who used their hands, or, more often, belts, bungee cords or dog leashes to achieve a woozy high technically known as cerebral hypoxia.”

The game is also known as “space monkey” or the “scarf game.” The goal of the game is to achieve a woozy, dream-like state that comes before blacking out. However, the game has had lethal results.

The article continues:

It’s likely that there are about 100 U.S. choking game deaths each year, said Dr. Tom Andrew, New Hampshire’s chief medical examiner, who has been studying the phenomenon for several years.

Andrew said many coroners and medical examiners likely label the deaths as suicides because they don’t have the time or resources to interview a victim’s friends and look for alternate explanations.

Study authors said they weren’t worried that release of the report — and subsequent coverage — would prompt a spike in choking game deaths, even though youngsters typically learn about the practice through media reports.

Asphyxiation games date back decades, with waves of the fad cycling through generations.  Word spreads much faster in an era when kids can find choking game demonstrations on YouTube, Leonardi noted.