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Allergies to Chlorophyll???
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SimPilot posted:
Hello!

One of my co-workers claims that he has an "allergy to chlorophyll..." He says that if he comes in contact with any green plant, he has a reaction. In fact, he has said that if he walks on grass barefoot he develops a rash on his feet. Moreover, if he ingests "anything green that contains chlorophyll" (his phrase) that it causes him temporary nausea or a form of irratable bowel syndrom and in extreme cases he claims that he vomits. "His condition" has caused him to call out of work on Fridays and Mondays and I'm verrrrrryyy concerned for him.

However, I have a hard time believing that this condition is a legitimate allergy or illness. I've never heard of anything like this... I'm no scientist, but from what I remember in college, any plant that converts light into energy contains chorophyll... logically, my co-worker should be allergic to virtually all plants and shouldn't be able to eat any fruits or vegetables (which he does regularly as long as they aren't a shade of green.

I'm curious to see if any professionals have come across cases like this, similar to this or believe there could be truth to his claims.

Thanks!

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1 Replies |Watch This Discussion | Report This| Share this:Allergies to Chlorophyll???Hello!<br /> <br />One of my co-workers claims that he has an "allergy to chlorophyll..." He says that if he comes in contact with any green plant, he has a reaction. In fact, he has said that if he walks on grass barefoot he develops a rash on his feet. Moreover, if he ingests "anything green that contains chlorophyll" (his phrase) that it causes him temporary nausea or a form of irratable bowel syndrom and in extreme cases he claims that he vomits. "His condition" has caused him to call out of work on Fridays and Mondays and I'm verrrrrryyy concerned for him.<br /> <br />However, I have a hard time believing that this condition is a legitimate allergy or illness. I've never heard of anything like this... I'm no scientist, but from what I remember in college, any plant that converts light into energy contains chorophyll... logically, my co-worker should be allergic to virtually all plants and shouldn't be able to eat any fruits or vegetables (which he does regularly as long as they aren't a shade of green.<br /> <br />I'm curious to see if any professionals have come across cases like this, similar to this or believe there could be truth to his claims.<br /> <br />Thanks!
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kc1730 responded:
SimPilot :

Your co-worker is definately not making this up. I suffer from the exact same issue. It's called OAS (oral allergy syndrome). Because of severe environmental allergies to grass/plants/trees, whatever comes from them raw I can't eat (ie: fruits, vegetables, spices, etc.). I can tolerate eating 'some' vegetables only if they're cooked, and not a large amount. Reactions include: hives, itchy throat etc within minutes of eating something that may bother you, and even if you do ingest these certains foods your stomach can reject them causing severe pain, nausea or similar symptoms like irratable bowel syndrom. It's definately not made-up, and it's certainly not easy trying to eat 'healthy', when everything 'good for you' causes such problems. I was able to get help from a nutritionist, and I hope your co-worker can get some help too.
Report This| Share this:Allergies to Chlorophyll???<a href="http://exchanges.webmd.com/allergies-exchange/groupstory/14651424">SimPilot</a> :<br /><br />Your co-worker is definately not making this up. I suffer from the exact same issue. It's called OAS (oral allergy syndrome). Because of severe environmental allergies to grass/plants/trees, whatever comes from them raw I can't eat (ie: fruits, vegetables, spices, etc.). I can tolerate eating 'some' vegetables only if they're cooked, and not a large amount. Reactions include: hives, itchy throat etc within minutes of eating something that may bother you, and even if you do ingest these certains foods your stomach can reject them causing severe pain, nausea or similar symptoms like irratable bowel syndrom. It's definately not made-up, and it's certainly not easy trying to eat 'healthy', when everything 'good for you' causes such problems. I was able to get help from a nutritionist, and I hope your co-worker can get some help too.
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