Thanks for contacting us. We've received your submission.
What the sock?
Sickly TikTok users are sleeping with slices of potatoes in their socks in a desperate bid to beat the flu.
The bizarre remedy, known simply as “potato sock,” has gone viral on the app, with hundreds of clips showing social media users trying out the health hack.
With flu cases spiking this season, videos under the search term have clocked up an astronomical 8.1 billion views collectively.
And while some doctors have slammed it as pseudoscience, many desperate TikTokers have turned to the tater treatment after failing to overcome illness through more conventional means.
Some now swear by the practice, saying the potatoes have helped draw toxins out of their bodies, leaving them feeling fresh and energized.
“It works!! My daughter has been feeling so much better!!” one mom exclaimed after testing the trick on her sick child.
Advertisement
Potato sock flu remedy. It works !! My daughter has been feeling so much better !!! #potato #potatosocks
Her video, which has garnered more than 6.6 million views, instructs viewers on how to correctly complete the remedy.
“Grab a potato and cut two slices out of it,” the mom directs in her viral video, highlighting that each slice of the vegetable is relatively thin. “Put them beneath the sole of each foot and cover them with a sock overnight.”
The footage cuts to the following morning when she pulls the socks off her girl’s feet and states. “You’re going to see an imprint on the bottom of the foot, which is totally fine. You’re then going to see the potato slices, which are disgustingly dark. That’s because the toxins are removed and your child feels so much better,” she claims.
Indeed, the viral clip shows that the potato slices were blackened after being inside the socks all night — which left some viewers feeling queasy.
Tested out the potatoes in socks remedy and I’m convinced! #homeremedy #potatoes #fever #flu #fyp #potatoesinsock
Meanwhile, another mom also swore the hack worked on adults as well as children.
Alicia North showed off the blackened potatoes she left on the soles of her own feet overnight, before declaring, “Whatever it pulled out of my body, it worked. I feel so much better.”
Influencers including Isabelle Lux have also tried out the trendy trick. In her own video, the popular content creator cried: “What came out of my body last night? Tried to put potatoes in my socks and it’s the craziest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Is this a detox?”
“You can not tell me this is the most disgusting thing in the entire world,” she further declared. “I am in shock and tears.”
Lux claimed she was struggling with “the worst flu of her life” and confessed that the hack didn’t help cure her.
Numerous viewers, however, left comments saying the remedy had worked wonders for them. One enthused, “I did this last night and feel so much better.”
What came out of my body last night. Tried to put potatoes in my socks and it’s thecraziest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Is this a detox? Has anyone heard of this cold remedy?
But medical experts are warning TikTokers not to place promise in potatoes, instead saying there are better, proven methods to alleviate flu symptoms. Popular TikTok doc Tommy Martin posted a video encouraging viewers to get their children vaccinated against the flu, rather than stuff their socks with vegetables.
“This does NOT substitute seeing a doctor if your child is ill,” Dr Martin also declared.
#duet with @anotheroldmom the stores may run out of potatoes soon…… 😱😱 #flu #flu#flucured #doctor #homeremedy #factorcap #potato #potatoinsock #getwellsoon
Meanwhile, a nutritionist explained why the potatoes appeared so blackened after being taken out of the socks.
They debunked the claim that the black coloring was from toxins drawn out of the body, saying, “When the potato is sliced open, exposed to air and body heat then enzymatic browning will happen.”
“A potato in a sock is not going to cure your flu,” they bluntly declared.