Parents are trying to cure autism in their children by forcing them to drink Miracle Mineral Solution, which is a substance that is basically a dangerous bleach mixture.

There should be no need to explain that ingesting bleach may threaten the child's life, nor that autism, a neuro-developmental disease, can be cured by drinking something. Alas, here we are, as baffling trends continue to kick off 2018.

Miracle Mineral Solution Is Not A Cure For Autism

According to a Sunday People report, at least six police forces in Britain have questioned families on allegations that children as young as 2 years old were forced to drink a substance known as the Miracle Mineral Solution.

Miracle Mineral Solution, also known simply as MMS, is an unlicensed product that contains sodium chlorite with citric acid powder. These chemicals combine to create industrial-strength bleach, which may cause diarrhea, vomiting, and dehydration if ingested, either orally or through an enema.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said that MMS may "cause serious harm to health," while the British Food Standards Authority warned that the substance may also lead to reduced blood pressures, damaged guts, and respiratory failure.

There are people who believe in MMS as a cure, though. The investigators of Sunday People were able to join a closed Facebook group for parents across the UK who use MMS on their children. The parents claimed that MMS works, while posting pictures of rashes and injuries that are allegedly parasites leaving their children's bodies.

The potentially fatal practice has been linked to a controversial church in the United States, namely the secretive Genesis II Church, which was founded by former scientologist Jim Humble. There was also a secret conference exposed by BBC a few years ago of leading church figures visiting the UK to promote MMS, which was said to be a "non-dangerous religious sacrament."

The twisted practice is now under the spotlight, and hopefully authorities can do something to prevent the propagation and usage of MMS.

What's Wrong With 2018?

2018 is clearly not off to a good start, as this is already the third dangerous trend of the year.

The first life-threatening trend is raw water, which come in the form of glass orbs sold by startup Live Water that contain 2.5 gallons of unfiltered, untreated, and unsterilized spring water. This is basically unclean water, and drinking it may kill people.

Raw water was followed by the Tide Pod challenge, which requires participants to eat small pods filled with laundry detergent. Needless to say, consuming detergent is not a healthy practice.