# Tick bite could cause allergies to red meat and dairy

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tick-bite-could-cause-allergies-to-red-meat-and-dairy/695308>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [August 11, 2014, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tick-bite-could-cause-allergies-to-red-meat-and-dairy/695308 "2014-08-11T15:29:51Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\
**Post date:** [August 11, 2014, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tick-bite-could-cause-allergies-to-red-meat-and-dairy/695308/1 "2014-08-11T15:29:51Z")

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On behalf of the entire state of Texas: I apologize. Apparently, the bite of a critter called the Lone Star tick can [trigger an immune reaction in people who used to be able to consume dairy and red meat](http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/08/10/this-bugs-bite-could-turn-you-into-a-vegetarian/?tid=hp_mm&hpid=z3) with no previous problems.

The irony is that a place known for beef and barbecue is causing “a tide of involuntary vegetarianism is rolling up the Eastern seaboard.” In essence, according to the article, a sugar found in red meat and dairy can normally be consumed without problem – it is presumably destroyed by the digestion process. However, ticks also contain the substance, and when they bite a person it becomes injected into the bloodstream, triggering the formation of antibodies and causing “hives, breathing problems, a drop in blood pressure or even anaphylactic shock” the next time they are eaten.

My favorite line from the story:

> [@](#):
>
> … God must have done this to me. If you want a North Carolinian to question his faith, tell him God won’t let him eat pork chops.

(Tell me you don’t feel a little itchy right now. 🙂 )

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**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tick-bite-could-cause-allergies-to-red-meat-and-dairy/695308/2 "2014-08-12T02:11:53Z")

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Interesting.  
What we need now is a tick that will make people stop consuming Michael Bay movies.

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**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tick-bite-could-cause-allergies-to-red-meat-and-dairy/695308/3 "2014-08-12T02:28:27Z")

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Not vegetarianism. You can still eat fish and poultry. But it would definitely suck.

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**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\
**Post date:** [August 12, 2014, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tick-bite-could-cause-allergies-to-red-meat-and-dairy/695308/4 "2014-08-12T03:52:29Z")

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self preservation.

it doesn’t want you to eat potential hosts.