Throughout high school, student sit through lecture after lecture on drunk driving and drugs. The dangers are drilled into our heads. But not enough is said about the choking game. This “game” consists of strangling yourself or having someone else strangle you to the point that you become light-headed. This dizzy “high” may seem safer than getting drunk or high from drugs, but in fact you are starving your brain of oxygen and killing brain cells. Disturbingly, kids as young as nine are experimenting with this very dangerous “game.”

An organization called GASP (Games Adolescents Shouldn’t Play) exists to educate young people about the risks of the choking game. Death from this game can occur when teens use belts or ropes to cut off their circulation for what they think will be only a few seconds. According to GASP, 11 people died in 2013, and a shocking 151 kids died in 2006 from the choking game.

We must raise awareness about this dangerous game. Parents need to sit down with their kids and teach them about the risks. Kids who participate are often good students and athletes who choose this game because they mistakenly believe it is a “safer” alternative to drugs or alcohol. In fact, playing the choking game kills thousands of brain cells and with one quick slip can lead to death. And just like alcohol and drugs, the choking game can be addictive. It can result in seizure, stroke, brain damage, or death.

Teens crave risks, but the choking game is one risk that’s just not worth taking.