{"id":27241,"date":"2025-04-17T10:10:10","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T10:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/27241\/"},"modified":"2025-04-17T10:10:10","modified_gmt":"2025-04-17T10:10:10","slug":"west-midlands-woman-27-told-she-could-die-by-eating-single-piece-of-fruit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/27241\/","title":{"rendered":"West Midlands woman, 27, told she could die by eating single piece of fruit"},"content":{"rendered":"

A West Midlands woman allergic to fruit and vegetables<\/a> hasn’t eaten a single green in more than 20 years – and says a bite could kill her.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Chloe Raisbeck, 27, was diagnosed with oral allergy<\/a> syndrome (OAS) – an allergy to any pollen-derived substances – in January 2005 at the age of seven.<\/p>\n

\"ChloeChloe Raisbeck at home in Meriden, West Midlands.<\/p>\n

She first realised something was wrong when a bite from a peach at school caused her lips to swell and her throat to itch<\/a> – and she sought help from the school nurses in May 2004.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After feeling she “wasn’t taken seriously”, that same week, she had an apple and began displaying the same “painful” symptoms.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She was taken to the doctors, where a blood test confirmed she had allergies, before being referred to an allergist – who diagnosed her with OAS after a skin prick test revealed a whole list of food reactions. The condition affects only two per cent of the UK population – and its causes and symptoms are commonly linked to hay fever.<\/p>\n

Chloe is now allergic to 15 different fruits, vegetables, and nuts – including bananas, kiwis, carrots, almonds and bell peppers – and has avoided eating her five-a-day for 20 years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She has developed a “fear of eating” and now relies on multivitamin supplements to get enough nutrients every day – and carries an EpiPen everywhere in case she goes into anaphylactic shock.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"ChloeChloe Raisbeck at home in Meriden, West Midlands.<\/p>\n

Chloe, a recruitment consultant from Solihull, West Midlands, said: “My allergies came out of nowhere. I was able to eat fruit and vegetables normally with no symptoms. But since taking a bite of that peach, my relationship with food has changed.<\/p>\n

“Being told by my allergist that I could potentially die by eating a single piece of fruit or going into anaphylaxis was terrifying. I was given an EpiPen and other antihistamines, which was confusing for a seven-year-old.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“If I eat any of my five-a-day, I develop swollen lips, an itchy throat, and lumps in my mouth. I’m lucky my symptoms aren’t too bad, but every time I eat, there’s a constant fear. It has made eating very difficult – and I’ll have to rely on giving myself multivitamins every day to treat my allergies.<\/p>\n

“It’s a mare when people are cooking for me because my condition is a difficult thing to believe. It makes me worried that they aren’t going to take it seriously, and I could end up seriously hurt. When I go to the supermarket or restaurant, I’m often googling or looking up the ingredients to ensure my safety. It has taken over a lot of my life and has become somewhat of a phobia.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Chloe has started introducing foods she’s never eaten before to see if she’d react – and has now started eating raspberries. She hopes to build a healthy relationship with food and not eat in fear.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said: “I will be allergic to those foods for the rest of my life. So I’m trying to reintroduce stuff that I\u2019ve been so scared of eating. Over the next few years, I hope to have more varied diets and that I can eat more things. But for now, I’m going to take it slow, one bite at a time.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

List of foods Chloe is allergic to:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Apple<\/p>\n

Peach<\/p>\n

Plum<\/p>\n

Nectarine<\/p>\n

Cherry<\/p>\n

Banana\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kiwi<\/p>\n

Carrot<\/p>\n

Spinach<\/p>\n

Bell peppers<\/p>\n

Parsley<\/p>\n

Almonds<\/p>\n

Hazelnuts<\/p>\n

Avocado<\/p>\n

Raw tomato<\/p>\n

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