Ideas for a Fear Factor-Themed 16th Birthday Party

For 16-year-olds who think they're above childish games and immature activities, throw a Fear Factor-themed party. Fear Factor was a reality television show where contestants competed in crazy events for a large cash prize. The contestants ate gross foods, did stunts and completed other unusual tasks. Use the same ideas to throw a Fear Factor-themed party for a 16th birthday party.

Create a variety of gross foods, both real and fake, and host a gross food eating contest. Arrange each type of food on a different plate and on a different area of the table, which creates stations. The contestants must work their way around the table, eating the entire dish or item offered at each station. The winner is the person who finishes every dish first, but don't be surprised if you have teens unwilling to eat everything. Boil calf liver or heart and offer tongue or intestine. Create a few fakes dishes too, such as dog biscuits made from peanut butter cookie dough or animal blood, which is red punch with imitation bacon bits, to make it slightly chunky.

Boil a box of spaghetti until completely cooked through. It's helpful if you leave the pasta in the water a few minutes longer because it makes the noodles slightly slimy to the touch. Pour red food coloring into the pot and mix with a spoon. Add a little extra water, just enough to make the mixture slightly soupy. Divide the mixture into individual bowls, giving each contestant their own bowl. Place plastic spiders and other fake bugs in the noodles and mix well. This coats the bugs with the noodles and makes it harder to find all the bugs. Make sure that each bowl has an equal number of bugs. The contestants must find all the bugs in their bowl, using only their mouth. Anyone who uses their hands is automatically disqualified.

For a walk on glass competition, break several bags of potato chips into pieces of different sizes, including smaller crumbs and larger pieces. Pour the chips on a flat surface, such as flattened cardboard boxes or a plastic tarp. Keep the area hidden from the teens until you're ready to play. Blindfold the teens and tell them that they're about to walk across broken glasses. This is a simple activity that doesn't involve food, but still gets the teens into the Fear Factor feel.