A man in the Hamptons, New York, saw what he thought was an ice pop in the freezer and ate it. It turns out he ate an ice pack, which led to a hilarious and concerning realization and went viral online.
TikToker Briana Koutros shared the exact moment of the epiphany online. She often shares lifestyle videos alongside her family, some of them featuring her brother, who is the viral clip’s protagonist. The video attached above went viral, garnering 6.6 million views, 778,100 likes, and more than 5,200 comments in less than a day.
The New York man stood right in front of a fridge and a woman who appears to be his mother. He was holding an ice pack sheet with multiple compartments filled with blue gel. It seemed like the realization happened off camera, as the clip only showed the reactions to the ice pack truth.
The woman, with a concerned expression, touched one of the blue gel compartments. The man had chewed through it.
“You have to call the doctor. You ate the whole thing?” the woman said. Her son answered, “I think I did.” Shocked, she responded, “And how did it taste?“
Both Briana and her brother began laughing. Their mother asked him, “Are you [expletive] stupid?” The New York man, meanwhile, said, “How does it not look like an ice pop?“
Eating Ice Packs? Not Good
While the video is laughter-heavy, the mother does raise a valid concern. According to Poison Control, depending on the type of ice pack, people could develop a variety of symptoms right after ingestion.
Instant ice packs, for example, have various chemical reactors that can cause shortness of breath, dizziness, fatigue, vomiting, and headaches.
eusable ice packs typically contain water, a thickening agent, coloring, and an ingredient such as propylene glycol to lower the freezing point. According to Poison Control, swallowing a small amount usually causes only mild irritation, although larger amounts can potentially cause severe drowsiness, unresponsiveness, and slowed breathing. Some older reusable ice packs contained highly toxic substances such as ethylene glycol or diethylene glycol, but Poison Control says those products were recalled and should no longer be available.
Reactions
Many viewers reacted the same way as the woman shown in the video: with utter disbelief. One said, “No wonder women live longer.” Another one commented, “What flavor did he think it was?“
Others decided to take the bashing a little bit further. One wrote, “I’ll never understand why they pay them more.” Another one added, “How’d they ever oppress us?” Finally, some asked if the man was okay, and Briana confirmed he was.
In a follow-up clip, the New York man is seen dressed up, back home from shopping. It is safe to say that the ice pack did little to no harm to his spirit.
