What Is the Ketchup Challenge? All About the Cleaning Trend That's Getting Mixed Results

In the viral "ketchup challenge" trend, TikTokers purposefully pour ketchup on the kitchen counter and ask their boyfriends to clean up the spill

<p>Stockah/Getty Images</p> Viral

Stockah/Getty Images

Viral 'ketchup challenge' has TikTok users asking their boyfriends to clean up food spills

One TikTok challenge is such a simple task that users are questioning if it even counts as a challenge.

In the viral trend that many are tagging #ketchupchallenge, TikTokers purposefully pour ketchup on the kitchen counter and ask their partners to clean up the spill.

After a look of confusion or exclamation over the wasted ketchup, the partners, who are primarily men, are fairly divided in their reactions.

Some don’t bat an eye and wipe up the condiment until the countertop is clean — with the help of cleaning spray in some instances. Others take a messier approach and use a paper towel to smear the ketchup all over the counter, creating a bigger mess than before.

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The men who are more diligent in their cleaning strategies still face criticism.

“How amazing that an adult can clean a countertop. I can’t believe he’s so talented,” one person wrote on @bizwithamina’s video of her boyfriend properly cleaning the counter.

Related: The Brothers Sun Food Stylists Made 1,200 Churros for the Netflix Show: 'None Went to Waste!' (Exclusive)

TikTok user @debbiekval’s video of the "ketchup challenge" shows the inefficient way of cleaning. In the video posted earlier this month, her boyfriend moves the ketchup all over the counter in a circular motion, leaving one commenter to ask, “ok why is he polishing with ketchup.” His remarkably unhygienic method prompted many people to comment their hopes that this was just a skit.

User @katherinee_310 seems to have started the trend with a TikTok she shared in December. In her version, she asks her fiancé to clean up spilled hot sauce. Once again, he just swirls it around the counter and does not use water or a cleaning solution to help.

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Many users have commented on various TikToks that the men are demonstrating “weaponized incompetence,” which is when someone purposefully performs a task poorly so they won’t be asked to do it again.

Related: Reese Witherspoon Defends Her Choice to Eat Snow After TikTok Recipe Video Sparks Heated Debate

Another current TikTok trend is a little more peaceful.

A "sleepy girl mocktail" has gone viral on TikTok, with supporters claiming it helps them fall asleep — and stay asleep.

<p>Jenicka Lopez/TikTok; Getty</p> The sleep girl cocktail is another TikTok trend.

Jenicka Lopez/TikTok; Getty

The sleep girl cocktail is another TikTok trend.

"I sleep like an absolute baby when I drink this," said TikTok creator Maddison__Lynn, whose video had 3.8 million views. And TikToker Taaylorvictoriaa shared a video with her mom, who said the drink gave her "the best sleep I've had in I don't know how long."

There are variations on the drink, but the consistent ingredients are seltzer (Poppi's raspberry rose is often used), magnesium, and tart cherry juice. While tart cherries contain a small amount of melatonin, what's really helping people relax is the magnesium.

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But how authentic are users responses to the drink? Kristina Freshour, a registered dietician at the Katz Institute for Women's Health, tells PEOPLE, "It's not a myth."

"Magnesium does help with anxiety and mood and it also helps with sleep, which as we know, getting good quality sleep also helps with anxiety and mood,” Freshour says, adding that the type of magnesium to find for a good night's rest is magnesium glycinate.

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