# Tainted avocado from Walmart. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 13, 2015, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575 "2015-10-13T20:52:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/21 "2015-10-14T16:58:03Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > I hope you’re kidding. Otherwise this would be the most asinine post I’ve read in quite some time. It’s those implied winks and smilies, eh? Get you every time. ---
**Author:** ![peedin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peedin/32/14095_2.png) [@peedin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peedin)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/22 "2015-10-14T18:03:23Z")
And nix the reference to the avocado being from Walmart. The source of the avocado has nothing to do with her reaction. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2015, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/23 "2015-10-14T23:55:47Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > I’ve no doubt you see sudden onset of OAS far more frequently than I. Still, I’m inclined to look for deltas. > > I’m tempted to have OP’s wife eat the other avocado (well washed). If not just to settle our differences but in the service of Science. I have an Epi-Pen and some liquid Benadryl, if we’re going to do this test. > [@MoonMoon](#): > > There’s a lot of ignorance and misconceptions about food allergies out there, but this is very close to the top of the list. Just because you’ve “always eaten” something does not mean you can’t develop an allergy to it. Far too often people have a reaction like the OP’s wife and shrug it off, not knowing that the next time they eat the food the reaction could be anaphylactic. This. ^^^ You can develop an allergy at any time. And it can go from “my mouth is kinda itchy” to “WHEEZE” really quickly. BTW, if your wife has a latex sensitivity, guess what? Avocados are a food that cross-react in people with latex allergy. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/24 "2015-10-15T00:07:43Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > So all my life I’m eating avocados without the slightest issues. And next time, bam! OAS? Yes. This happens with shellfish allergies all the time. Decades of joyful consumption and then nope. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/25 "2015-10-15T00:10:07Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Now you’re implying stuff that the OP didn’t mention, a high lifetime frequency of avocado consumption. So that complicates it. OAS is still a good working diagnosis for you too, but perhaps not as firmly. Even so, allergies can and do develop anytime in life, regardless of previous exposure frequency. Not _regardless of_ - sometimes allergies develop \*because of \*a lot of exposure. I’m allergic to basil, which very few people are, and my allergy developed after months of doing lots of tomato sauce covered dishes in the dining hall. Most of us were exposed to a lot of it sometime pre-allergy, and that’s the theory of why we developed the allergy. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/26 "2015-10-15T00:19:52Z")
Happens with latex allergy as well. I’m allergic because I was working in a hospital in the mid-80s, when universal precautions became mandatory. Lots of latex exposure. Fifteen years later, I learn that I have a latex allergy (BTW, my body decided to show the allergy after exposure to latex \*condoms \*. That was a joy). ---
**Author:** ![purplehearingaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@purplehearingaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehearingaid)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/27 "2015-10-15T01:04:11Z")
> [@MoonMoon](#): > > There’s a lot of ignorance and misconceptions about food allergies out there, but this is very close to the top of the list. Just because you’ve “always eaten” something does not mean you can’t develop an allergy to it. Far too often people have a reaction like the OP’s wife and shrug it off, not knowing that the next time they eat the food the reaction could be anaphylactic. I agree with to you ! I have a niece that ate shrimps and was fine after she had her baby she ate some shrimps and had an allergy reaction from them . She was still in the hospital was and treated right away . You can become allergic to foods that you ate all your life. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/28 "2015-10-15T01:55:48Z")
Sensitization can have a long induction period. It wasn’t unusual in the lab to have a chemist who suddenly couldn’t work with a chemical that he or she had been fine with for years. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/29 "2015-10-15T01:58:42Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > So all my life I’m eating avocados without the slightest issues. And next time, bam! OAS? Yep, it can happen like that. It _has_ happened to me like that, more than once, which is why I no longer eat barley or peanuts and as of two weeks ago chia seeds are now on my forbidden list. Sure sounds like a food allergy to me - _maybe_ it’s not, but I’d either get it checked out to be sure or just avoid avocados in the future. ---
**Author:** ![keturah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e95f7d/32.png) [@keturah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keturah)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/30 "2015-10-15T02:04:37Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > Yes. > > This happens with shellfish allergies all the time. Decades of joyful consumption and then nope. This exact thing happened to me a couple of years ago. It is terrible because I know exactly what I am missing:mad: ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Duality](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.duality/32/4098_2.png) [@Mr.Duality](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Duality)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/31 "2015-10-15T03:20:32Z")
Sorry I didn’t get back here sooner. I misunderstood her. She was saying she was glad it wasn’t a full-blown anphyllactic reaction. The next avo she tries will be well washed and carefully consumed. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/32 "2015-10-15T03:27:19Z")
> [@Mr.Duality](#): > > Sorry I didn’t get back here sooner. I misunderstood her. She was saying she was glad it wasn’t a full-blown anphyllactic reaction. The next avo she tries will be well washed and carefully consumed. That’s seriously nutty. Please encourage her not to eat more of them, well washed or otherwise, at least not until she’s checked with an allergist. Allergies tend to get worse, not better, so next time very well **could** be a full-blown anaphylactic reaction. ---
**Author:** ![steatopygia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steatopygia/32/3132_2.png) [@steatopygia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steatopygia)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/33 "2015-10-15T05:00:53Z")
> [@Mr.Duality](#): > > Sorry I didn’t get back here sooner. I misunderstood her. She was saying she was glad it wasn’t a full-blown anphyllactic reaction. The next avo she tries will be well washed and carefully consumed. Dude, that is what **Quicksilver** posted above… **.JOKINGLY** If she really wants to prove to herself how allergic reactions progress from exposure to exposure, perhaps she can try her next avocado in the parking lot in front of the ER. Still…the Walmart angle is a mighty loud zebra…just sayin ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/34 "2015-10-15T05:13:33Z")
My brother has allergic reactions to red food dye. One day he can drink red soda, the next day…he is covered in hives. A few months later, he can drink it again and be fine for years. Then all of a sudden, red foods cause hives. It really is an overnight thing. ---
**Author:** ![lost4life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@lost4life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lost4life)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2015, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/35 "2015-10-15T13:48:48Z")
No avocados would seriously impact one’s trencherman status. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2015, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/36 "2015-10-16T02:58:34Z")
This same thing happened to me with bananas about two years ago. I can’t even have the slightest bit of banana in bread or pudding. I ate bananas all my life no problem then suddenly they gave me an oral rash, my lips and nose go numb, and I get a racing heartbeat, blurred vision and stomach cramps. The first few times before I realized it was bananas it wasn’t so bad. Just the mouth fuzzies and the roof of my mouth would get a bit of a blister. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2015, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/37 "2015-10-16T03:04:57Z")
> [@Mudshark](#): > > My brother has allergic reactions to red food dye. One day he can drink red soda, the next day…he is covered in hives. A few months later, he can drink it again and be fine for years. Then all of a sudden, red foods cause hives. It really is an overnight thing. Does he know which red food dye? There are several. I’m allergic to Bactrim and Cipro, and both allergies showed up after multiple exposures. ---
**Author:** ![Mudshark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f04885/32.png) [@Mudshark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudshark)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2015, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/38 "2015-10-16T03:53:11Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > Does he know which red food dye? There are several. > > I’m allergic to Bactrim and Cipro, and both allergies showed up after multiple exposures. I don’t know off the top of my head, but red pop tends to be one of the things that he can sometimes drink, and sometimes not. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2015, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575/39 "2015-10-16T04:19:40Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > Yes. > > This happens with shellfish allergies all the time. Decades of joyful consumption and then nope. Yup. Happened to me. I used to love shrimp, even more so than Bubba Blue, then sometime in my 30s I started having reactions after eating shrimp where my uvula would swell and it felt like I would swallow it. This progressed to actual physical nausea after eating shrimp. I didn’t make the connection at first, or maybe I did but was in denial, because I never had a reaction to shrimp before in all my life. Fortunately I haven’t had a reaction severe enough to hospitalize me, but now I avoid shrimp (and all shellfish) altogether. I’m glad that’s the only food I’m allergic to. But allergies can come on suddenly at any time, even to things you’ve been exposed to all your life. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tainted-avocado-from-walmart/734575.md?page=1)