It would be crazy to lie about having a food allergy, but some people think other's "intolerance" is actually just preference. These poor people shared the time they had to physically remind their loved ones and coworkers that eating certain foods would mean life or death for them.
(Content has been edited for clarity.)
Her “Accidents” Don’t Seem Like Genuine Mistakes
“My mother pulls tricks on me constantly. I stopped accepting food from her a long time ago because she will either purposely add my allergens into the food or use utensils covered in my allergens to stir otherwise uncontaminated food. She just refuses to believe that her kid could have a life-threatening allergy. I don’t have the kind of food allergies that just make your stomach upset. If I come in contact with any fermented or mold based food, my throat will close and my nail beds turn blue as I stop breathing. I have been hospitalized for this. Everyone who knows me knows this and tries to avoid bringing me into contact with problem foods. Except for my mother.
The worst example of this behavior happened when I was moving. My mom came over to ‘help me move’ and brought over what looked like french fries covered in ranch. She picked one up and brought it to my face like she was going to feed it to me. I was 22 years old at this point. The smell alone clued me in that this was blue cheese, so I jerked back and said, ‘No! I’m not eating that,’ and removed myself from the situation because I knew I would start screaming at her if I didn’t. But my friend, let’s call him Dave, was flabbergasted. Everyone knew not to bring this around me, and my mom just strolled in and tried to feed it to me? Dave is a large, 6’6 black man. He crossed his arms, looked at my mom and said, ‘Dawg, you know that stuff will kill her.’ She stammered out some, ‘Oh, I forgot’ and made a hasty retreat to pretend to be helping somewhere.
Ever since that incident she has stopped trying to pull this in front of him or anyone else who will call her out on it and has moved onto ‘accidentally’ cross-contaminating things, but she still brings up how ‘mean’ Dave is for ‘cussing at her’ when she ‘just wanted to bring some food over.'”
This Aunt Went Absolutely Nuts
“My brother is allergic to tree nuts. My aunt thought he was lying because he’d eat things with peanuts in it.
Several times she brought foods with nuts in them to Christmas get-togethers. Never bothered my brother much, he just didn’t eat them. This really upset her, so she made this big plate of chocolate chip cookies. My brother ate about six of them. About 20 minutes later, he was hacking and coughing. An EpiPen, a Benedryl, and a trip to the hospital later, my aunt finally told us that she used almond flour because she knew he was making it up.
My dad chewed her out, told her to stay out of our house, and didn’t talk to her for years. When my grandma was dying, she asked my dad to forgive her and get along.
He gave it a try for a few years but she is a piece of work. She would always say that since my dad was divorced, he was a widower. She’d make comments on how my siblings and I couldn’t have had a chance without a proper upbringing. We’re all successful, her kids are in jail or on baby daddy number four.
I told her to get lost at a family reunion a couple of years ago. She wouldn’t quit badgering me about having kids. I’d recently miscarried a baby and lost my ability to have children. She didn’t get it though.
I quit talking to her whole family, although they do try to contact me for money or to sell crappy yoga pants occasionally. My dad didn’t invite them to Christmas this year either, so hopefully, we’re done with them.”
Their Family Just Didn’t Want To Listen
“I have a couple of different major allergies, some of them are…odd. As a result, most people think I’m just pulling their leg, like when I tell them I have an allergy to Cocoa (aka chocolate).
My mom’s side of the family was brutal people. They fed me chocolate-laced breakfast foods and candies without my knowledge, but since I was so small when they discovered my allergy, I hadn’t had enough chocolate to know what it tasted like besides pain. I just knew my mouth would tingle, my throat would feel tight, and that I would throw up not soon afterward.
My mom figured out these ‘throwing up fits’ would happen ONLY around her family, so she asked them to stop.
They didn’t.
One day, my aunt gave me a full-sized hunk of pure dark chocolate. I went into a full reaction and I still remember her freaking out when I dropped/started changing colors and her calling an ambulance. I don’t remember the ride and apparently, my oxygen went down so much by the time the ambulance got there that any longer and I would have suffocated. My stomach was pumped and traced, and I was left in ICU for a couple of days because my lungs couldn’t handle it and breathing was a nightmare.
My aunt was arrested for attempted manslaughter. At first, the police were skeptical, but she openly admitted to feeding me chocolate over a small span of time to ‘disprove’ my allergy. So the officer in charge of filing warped it around to be attempted manslaughter. But the court settled with no jail-time as long as she paid off my medical bills as we didn’t have insurance at the time.
She paid it but was definitely not happy about it. As a result, she doesn’t have anything on her record and can still be in contact with children.
I, however, have a restraining order against her still to this day.”
Not Being Up To Code In The Restaurant Biz Is A Big No No
“I know it’s popular to hate ‘gluten-free’ people right now, but I legitimately can’t consume gluten because I have celiac disease. There’s a threshold for my allergy, but I’m not totally sure where the line is. I’m usually fine eating, for example, fries from the same fryer as onion rings, but if I eat an actual piece of bread I’ll get headaches, stomachaches, and probably throw it up.
Anyway, the summer after high school my friend got me a job at this crappy Mexican restaurant where she worked. Everything came in bagged or frozen except the green chili which we made in-house. Every time I start at a new restaurant, I make it a habit to learn what allergens are in what dishes because I take that crap seriously, and I also want to know what I can eat safely. This restaurant had all ingredients and allergens for everything listed in a binder so I read through it and saw that the chili was actually gluten-free.
Every day at work I would get a plate of rolled chicken enchiladas on corn tortillas smothered in green chili, but after a few days, I started feeling sick. It started with headaches, then stomach cramps so bad I had trouble focusing at work. I messed up orders, had to constantly take breaks, and was generally miserable. In the middle of the night or in the mornings, I would wake up throwing up, but this being the restaurant industry, no one would let me call in sick. Eventually, I threw up in the bathroom while at work and they sent me home. I was out for two days, but I couldn’t figure out what had made me sick because I’m careful about my groceries and everything I had eaten at the restaurant was supposed to be gluten-free.
When I got back, I was talking to my friend about how confused I was with the whole thing and she started laughing. She didn’t believe I had a real allergy and thought it would be funny to prove I was faking it, so she got the cooks to add flour to the chili. Obviously, I was upset. She essentially poisoned me and who knows how many other people by adding the flour. What is wrong with people?”
Technicalities Could’ve Made Her Sister Wind Up Dead, But She Didn’t Care Much
“My sister would make food and then make the excuse that the label only said ‘MAY contain traces of nuts’ when I said my throat was itching and I was getting an agonizing stomachache. She did it so often that I eventually refused to eat anything she made. She didn’t like me. Maybe she was trying to be a juvenile homicidal maniac by using cake as a murder weapon.
Also, my dad would make a peanut and rice mix and refuse to let me get anything else for dinner. I should just pick the peanuts out, according to him. He also would make himself peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and put a big smear of peanut butter in the jelly, then shout at me when I refused to eat jelly sandwiches.
Maybe they had a juicy life insurance policy for me or something.”
His Revenge Plan
“My body is super intolerant of beans, and even if I eat just a small amount, I’m on the toilet the rest of the day or night. I tried to explain this to my mother-in-law, but she just ignored it acting like I didn’t like them. She wouldn’t stop pushing and pushing about me trying her chili that ‘didn’t have that many beans’ when it actually did, and that ‘I’d probably like it if I tried it.’
My wife insisted on staying there, so I decided to prove a point. I ate a bowl, and as expected within an hour, I had that rumbling in my stomach. The bathroom was right off the dining room and living room, so I proceeded to go in there and hold nothing back, taking some of the loudest most disgusting sounding poops I’ve ever taken. Every time I left the bathroom, I’d stare her down. After the third or fourth time of pooping out my guts that night, she said, ‘I guess you really can’t handle beans.'”
“She Didn’t Want Anyone To Know What She Did, And Now Everyone Does”
“I have a super uncommon allergy that means I can’t eat a good majority of plant matter. The best that my doctors were able to narrow it down to is ‘most likely chlorophyll’ because it happens most severely with green plants – the greener, the worse it is. My best friend knew about this and knew that I believed it; why wouldn’t I believe it? My brother and two of my cousins have the exact same issue. Well, SHE didn’t believe it.
So five years ago, she decided to test it without telling me. She was training to be a nurse’s assistant at that point, and she thought there was no way my allergy could be accurate. She had made me fruit smoothies before that I tolerated just fine, and she was always pretty good about making sure any food she gave me met my dietary requirements. But that day she decided that she would add a piece of spinach – not enough to be able to taste it or see it, but it was there. She thought that if it worked, she’d be able to ‘sneak’ me more in other ways, build up a strong enough case, and then tell me, ‘Oh, you’re not actually allergic. Now you can have all these plants that you thought you couldn’t before and it’ll help you be healthier.’
Things were fine for the first 10 minutes after I started drinking it, and she was getting progressively more gleeful that her plan was working. Then I began having symptoms – shaking, sweating, mouth going numb, swollen tongue, and violently puking. I was sick for four hours as my body tried to expel what I had eaten. I asked her what was in the smoothie and she straight up lied to me. She said it was strawberries, milk, and protein powder. All things I can have. She had made it herself, and I had no reason to not believe her. Because of that, I made the mistake of assuming it COULDN’T have been my allergies. I didn’t treat it correctly and just thought I was getting randomly sick, leading to four hours of vomiting and wheezing and being scared of what was happening to my body.
Four years later, she finally came clean, but in public at a grocery store, so I couldn’t get visibly upset with her and yell at her for how stupid she had been.
I asked her if she would have done this to someone with Celiac’s or a peanut allergy. She said: ‘No, that would be wrong’ in this super-offended tone of voice. I asked her if she realized she had tried to poison me, and her response was that she was only trying to help me. I kind of saw red at that point and asked her why she didn’t tell me then what she had done, while I was sick and couldn’t figure out why. She said she was scared I wouldn’t be her friend anymore.
So… to cap everything off, she put me in a position where things could have gone horribly, horribly wrong medically if my allergy had been worse or if I had been able to drink more than I had before my body revolted. My lips and mouth had gone numb, a step that is dangerously close to anaphylaxis, and she was training to be in the medical field. By all rights, she should have known that things could get worse in a small amount of time, and I needed to be told the truth. She chose not to tell me then. All because she was scared of losing a friendship.
She still sometimes makes jokes about it. I don’t know what to think about it anymore. She did promise that she would never do it again because that incident scared her more than she expected. I feel like that’s a bit of a, ‘Well, obviously nobody in their right minds would do that a second time’ kind of situation.
I decided I’d get her back for tricking me like she did. She got offended that my ‘trick’ was that I gifted her two EpiPens in front of the rest of our friends. You know, just in case she decides to try killing someone else for the sake of confirming her own beliefs. She didn’t want anyone to know what she did, and now everyone does.”
She Figured She Could “Change Her Mind” About Her Own Food Allergy
“I’m allergic to avocado. A lot of people think I’m lying because I don’t like it. I think guacamole is delicious, but unfortunately, it just makes me violently ill. My sister-in-law thought I would ‘change my mind’ if I had avocado in the right context. She gave me a burrito with guac which I stupidly ate by the campfire so the green avocado color looked like queso. I vomited. A lot. For a long time.”
He’s Willing To Put His Life On The Line For Just A Small Piece Of Meat
“In 2014, I had made homemade beef tacos the night prior to having my first hives/anaphylaxis. At this time, the doctors didn’t know what I was allergic to so they did a blood test on everything. It came back negative on red meat skin test, but highly positive for Alpha-Gal Allergy.
My Asian mom didn’t believe in the allergy, so she didn’t believe me when I told her. I was already having a hard time with it, knowing I would never be able to eat a nice medium rare steak ever again.
Mom made a stew with pork in it, but surprisingly I didn’t have a reaction. A reaction for me could start between four and 12 hours after ingestion. I thought I was cleared and I wasn’t allergic anymore, but no. A few months later after returning to my normal diet with red meat, I had the quickest and most dangerous reaction. My body went straight to anaphylaxis in four hours.
Since then, I’ve carefully monitored and stayed away from red meats, but will occasionally take a small piece of pork because I like the taste. I haven’t had a reaction from the small pieces, so I continue to eat small pieces from time to time to test my body’s limitations. I know I’m risking my life, but I’ve got a couple expired $600 EpiPens and with my luck, no reaction… yet.”
His Coworker’s Curry Caused An Explosive Reaction (Both Inside And Out)
“My co-worker kept insisting that my allergy to dairy was made up and that I was just picky.
We had a potluck dinner for the holidays, and he made a curry chicken dish and said there wasn’t any dairy in it. I was suspicious and said, ‘Are you sure? Most curries have dairy in it.’ He said no, not at all.
I ate it and it was delicious, but two hours later I was having severe stomach cramps, running to the bathroom with diarrhea, and my absolute favorite: uncontrollable flatulence, along with a low-grade fever.
I’m allergic to casein, so if I consume it, I’m out of commission for two days tethered to the bathroom and farting my brains out.
I went and stood next to him after my bathroom visit, and he asked if I liked the curry. I just let out the loudest fart he had ever heard, and the best part was he was cornered, so he couldn’t get past me.
I looked him in the face and said I just spent the last 30 minutes pooping my brains out. I had to take four Motrin, and I was in excruciating pain. The only thing I ate was his curry that he said had no dairy in it, so I know he did it on purpose.
I took off the next two days and filed a complaint with my manager and wasn’t docked for the time off.
I still would have liked to beat the crap out of that guy.”
When Your Parents Don’t Make The Link, So You Have To
“My parents, to an extent, have constantly tricked me to eat what I’m allergic to.
When I was a small child, I stopped breathing when my parents moved me from human milk to cow’s milk. The doctors told my parents that I was ‘likely’ lactose intolerance, and to just be careful to dairy.
My parents continued to feed my dairy.
When I was around 18, I was eating so much dairy daily. I was also constantly on the toilet, and constantly vomiting. I didn’t see the link.
I went to the doctors, and they ran some simple tests.
I now avoid dairy, and I am perfectly healthy. My parents still think I exaggerate.”
She Didn’t Even Realize She Basically Committed Attempted Murder
“In addition to having a dairy problem, I’m allergic to walnuts, and I mean anaphylactic shock-type allergic. So of course when I ask the nice lady if walnuts are the ‘secret’ to her chocolate chip cookies, she says no. I explain I’m allergic to them and it’s important. ‘No, no, just try them and you’ll see.’
I try them and immediately know there all walnuts.
‘See, you aren’t allergic.’
I start screaming at my friend across the room telling her where my EpiPen is in the car and to have someone call the ambulance now.
From the depths, I also wheeze out for someone to get her name and contact information.
Thanks for trying to kill me, lady.”
Their Mother Figured If The First Time Wasn’t The Charm, Maybe the 10th Or 20th Try Would Be
“I am deathly allergic to peanuts, but it didn’t become a full-blown, life-threatening allergy until my late teens. I have always HATED the taste of peanuts though, and they made my mouth/throat itch and overall made me feel nauseous from a young age.
My mother was convinced that I just needed to keep trying peanuts and learn to like them. She would sneak peanut butter in my jelly sandwiches thinking I wouldn’t notice. Being young, I didn’t realize that itchy mouth could be a sign of an allergy, and my mom apparently didn’t take me seriously and thought I was making excuses to not eat it.
One day she tried this tactic while my friend was over for lunch. We were about 10 years old. I realized what she’d done and felt betrayed and tricked. I dramatically shoved the plate away spilling my chocolate milk everywhere. I cried and ran away upset and embarrassed. My friend was crying from laughter. She still brings this incident up regularly.”
She Was Going To Make Sure This Lady Would Learn The Consequences Of Her Actions
“I’m lactose intolerant and my girlfriend’s mum just assumed I’m a fussy eater, which I am not.
She made a delicious leek and potato soup with fresh cream.
I had two bowls of the soup and it was so nice. However, 20 minutes later, I was bloated. Then, 20 minutes past that, I was farting like a trooper.
She kept asking me to leave the living room, but I politely refused.
She hasn’t done it since.”
Their “Friend” Ruined Their Birthday Plans With A Speck Of Oatmeal
“I have a severe intolerance to oatmeal; It doesn’t matter what kind or what food it might be a small ingredient in. That means on allergy tests it doesn’t show up but I can’t digest the stuff.
One time for my birthday a friend had kindly made me cookies. She liked to bake and experiment, so knowing that I asked her if they had oatmeal in them because I couldn’t eat oatmeal, and couldn’t digest it. She thought I was being picky and was just trying to politely say I didn’t like oatmeal cookies, but she wanted me to try her new concoction anyway. Well, I ate a cookie and it was terrific. About a minute after finishing it though, my stomach started to feel like I’d ingested molten lava. I was doubled over in pain for the rest of the day. I asked her what she put in them, and she sheepishly told me, ‘Well, they had a little oatmeal, but it was SO LITTLE I didn’t think it would matter!’
I had to cancel all my birthday plans because I couldn’t get out of bed to do anything at all. Actually, I put HER in charge of canceling so she could let everyone know exactly why I was indisposed.”
Father Doesn’t Always Know Best
“I’m allergic to mushrooms, which my father didn’t think was possible.
One weekend, when I was 14, it was my turn to cook dinner. Just because I was a kid, didn’t mean I couldn’t cook! I decided to make my own bolognese sauce, none of that Chef Boyardee stuff. Well, I left the sauce alone to simmer on the stove while I went out to play with the dogs. Whilst I was out, he secretly cooked a few mushrooms, liquidized them, mixed them into the sauce, then hid all the evidence. You couldn’t see them, smell them, or taste them. I ate the dinner, and two hours later, my guts began to protest and I was confused because I made the sauce myself.
There was nothing bad about it! Everyone else was fine! It wasn’t until the next morning (after everyone had to listen to me emptying my entire digestive system all night) that he finally admitted what he had done. It felt good listening to my mom shouting at him for hours, and she made him scrub the entire bathroom with a toothbrush once I was finally out of there.”