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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To speak to school about a game of Chubby Bunny?

101 replies

ChubbyBunny12 · 16/12/2019 21:07

NC for this as I’m not sure if I’m being a bit OTT here and want some perspective!
DS came home from school today and told me they had been playing Christmas party games, one of these was Chubby Bunny. For those of you who don’t know, it involves stuffing as many mallows as possible into your mouth and trying to say ‘chubby bunny’.
There has been at least one death in America of a child playing this game and the whole thing just seems like a very bad idea to me? AIBU to speak to school about this? I feel awful as the games were organised by volunteers (teachers were present) but I’m not sure it’s something I can let go without mentioning in case it happens again!

OP posts:
sirmione16 · 16/12/2019 21:46

There's going to be someone that's died reportedly from all sorts of games, you can't ban everything "just in case" else what would the children do all day?! They did the game under adult supervision, multiple of whom were likely first aid trained should anything go wrong. Let it go. It's unlikely the game will ever happen again unless the same bunch of volunteers do the event next year. Unnecessary to bring it up my opinion.

Skysblue · 16/12/2019 21:46

I would! Not ‘just’ because of the choking risk but also because it goes completely against the healthy eating stuff schools are supposed to teach, is a waste of food and generally disgusting. Either the marshmallows get eaten (yuk) or spat out (double yuk and weird connotations of bulimia/fat shaming).

I would be livid if that happened at our school. But it wouldn’t. I actually don’t know any schools who would think that was ok 🤔

ADogInTheManger · 16/12/2019 21:47

YANBU. Encouraging children to cram food into their mouths is incredibly foolish. Even more so when that food is marshmallows which are incredibly difficult to remove when lodged.

Yes death is rare but that's because playing chubby bunny is extremely rare when compared to driving in cars, flying, swimming etc. That doesn't mean that it isn't incredibly foolish and dangerous. Also death is not the only possible negative outcome of concern. Brain damage can also result from choking.

LaurieMarlow · 16/12/2019 21:48

20 posts on this thread and we’ve got 2 people personally knowing people who’ve died because of it and another near miss

Seems ... unlikely

Daisy169 · 16/12/2019 21:49

Thank you for educating me. I didn't realise that this game is dangerous, seems silly now it's been pointed out to me.

Letsbegin · 16/12/2019 21:50

I would be unhappy too and I only let my kids have mini marshmallows 1 at a time or melted in hot choc. It sticks in my mind as during my first aid training the paramedic said one of the only times he hasn't been able to save someone in a choking incident was with a marshmallow. He said they go so sticky and mould to the shape of the airway and they are extremely difficult to get out.

LaurieMarlow · 16/12/2019 21:50

If ppl actually knew how to manage risk and wanted to address causes of premature death, they’d be trying to drastically reduce driving.

They aren’t.

transformandriseup · 16/12/2019 21:52

We don't play this at scouts anymore because of the choking risk and I'm glad of it. There are loads of other food related games they can play instead.

Lulualla · 16/12/2019 21:52

I might be totally wrong but I thought that if you absolutely couldn't dislodge an item, you were meant to push it all the way down so it went into one long or the other. It would require surgery to remove, but it opened the airway and the other lung so they could breath? I might have seen that in a movie!!

Babdoc · 16/12/2019 21:53

I’d definitely speak to the school and say that you don’t want your child taking part in this ever again.
I’m a retired anaesthetist and remember being called to a cardiac arrest on a patient who had choked on a couple of marshmallows. The damn things were sticky and squashy, completely blocking the patient’s airway, and were extremely difficult to remove even with suction and forceps. The ward staff had failed to shift them with several Heimlich manoeuvres. I shudder to think of a non medically trained teacher trying to resuscitate an arrested child in this condition.

Popfan · 16/12/2019 21:54

Definitely contact the school about this.

ADogInTheManger · 16/12/2019 21:54

Driving can be dangerous yes, but it can also have many benefits for the individual,and indeed be necessary, very much unlike chubby bunny.

slashlover · 16/12/2019 21:54

What age is DS? If he's 5 then YANBU, if he's 15 then YABU.

Lllot5 · 16/12/2019 21:56

Not heard of this game but it sounds very risky to me. The marshmallow would get sticky and gooey and lodged in the throat. That’s before we get to stuffing good in your mouth and what a waste.

Lulualla · 16/12/2019 21:57

LaurieMarlow, there is also cost/benefit analysis. The benefits from faster methods of travel are so huge that the cost is worth it for most people.

The benefits of playing this game simply do not outweigh the risk of choking. I cant think of a single benefit from this... fun? Which they'd get from any number of safer games.

@sirmione16
If hitting a child on the arm was the biggest cause of death in children, then playing tig would be banned. But its not. The biggest cause of death in children is choking... so games with a massive choking risk should be banned.

Mummy2000sorry · 16/12/2019 21:57

This reply has been deleted

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overnightangel · 16/12/2019 21:58

What a crass and disgusting game

ADogInTheManger · 16/12/2019 22:00

I might be totally wrong but I thought that if you absolutely couldn't dislodge an item, you were meant to push it all the way down so it went into one long or the other. It would require surgery to remove, but it opened the airway and the other lung so they could breath? I might have seen that in a movie!!

Bloody hell! No, definitely do not try this.

ArnoldBee · 16/12/2019 22:00

My mum died 18 months ago choking on a crumpet. I'd always scoffed at the cutting grapes brigade - now I don't.

Original poster
ChubbyBunny12 · 16/12/2019 22:01

BadDoc- that story terrifies me and confirms why I don’t feel reassured by the supervision of ‘multiple first aid trained staff’.
For the PP who asked he’s 8, although I asked a friend who teaches secondary and she wouldn’t let the game be played in her school!

OP posts:
LaurieMarlow · 16/12/2019 22:02

Some global states from the WHO on traffic fatalities

Nearly 1.25 million people die in road crashes each year, on average 3,287 deaths a day.

An additional 20-50 million are injured or disabled.

More than half of all road traffic deaths occur among young adults ages 15-44.

Road traffic crashes rank as the 9th leading cause of death and account for 2.2% of all deaths globally.

Road crashes are the leading cause of death among young people ages 15-29, and the second leading cause of death worldwide among young people ages 5-14.

Each year nearly 400,000 people under 25 die on the world’s roads, on average over 1,000 a day.

www.asirt.org/safe-travel/road-safety-facts/

Still want to talk about cost benefit analysis?

Original poster
ChubbyBunny12 · 16/12/2019 22:02

Flowers ArnoldBee I’m so sorry to hear about your Mum.

OP posts:
ADogInTheManger · 16/12/2019 22:03

We all know that driving is dangerous, thank you.

ADogInTheManger · 16/12/2019 22:04

That's awful, ArnoldBee. I'm so sorry about your Mum. Thanks

MrsHardbroom · 16/12/2019 22:04

@Babdoc is the only person to listen to on this thread. Expert opinion trumps personal perception of 'risk' here.