Poison control called after Bluffton high schoolers try ‘hottest pepper in the world’

At least eight students at May River High School were sent home or to the nurse’s office Wednesday after trying Carolina Reaper Peppers — dubbed the “Hottest Chili Pepper in the World.”

Beaufort County School District spokesperson Jim Foster said a student brought the peppers to school Wednesday and passed them around to friends. Foster could not say where or how the student acquired the peppers.

Although more students may have tried the peppers, eight reported adverse effects to school staff.

The students’ symptoms varied from stomach pain similar to heartburn to a burning sensation in their eyes after trying the pepper and then touching their eyes, Foster said.

The school’s nurse contacted an expert at Poison Control who recommended that she give the students milk to help alleviate the burning sensation.

Three of the students were picked up by their parents before the school day ended and the remaining five stayed in the nurse’s office until their symptoms subsided, according to Foster.

The Carolina Reaper Pepper has an average heat unit of 1.6 million, according to the Scoville scale, which is used to quantify a substance’s level of spice.

In comparison, a habañero has an average rating of about 200,000 and a jalapeno is rated on average at about 5,000.

Dozens of videos on Youtube portray people trying the “hottest pepper in the world challenge” by eating a Carolina Reaper pepper. The participants’ reactions include screaming, coughing, crying and even vomiting.

According to Poison Control, eating too much capsaicin — the active ingredient in hot peppers — can cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea and a burning sensation when ingested. If the pepper juices get into a person’s eye, it can cause redness, tearing and intense pain.

The student who brought the peppers to school violated the district’s code of student conduct by “creating or participating in a school or classroom disturbance interfering with the instructional process,” according to Foster.

Foster said the student would be disciplined for the “level 2” violation according to the code, which calls for up to four days of out of school suspension.

“The school is communicating with parents that this should be an opportunity to talk to their children about safety,” Foster said. “Things, although they may seem like a good idea, are not always a good idea.

“... It stops being entertainment when it can injure you physically.”

This story was originally published September 20, 2018 at 11:33 AM.