One woman had the worst allergic reaction to peanuts any doctor had ever seen

Lauren Coutts (Andrew Cawley/DC Thomson)

They are so severe that even walking into a room with an open packet or bowl of nuts triggers a reaction.

And it all started with a jellybean.

But 26-year-old Lauren, from Dunfermline, has such a variety of allergies that anything from cats to dust can cause problems, too.

Lauren said she still recalls the day that was the pointer to a lifetime of worry.

“I was six and my mum had driven us to the airport to pick up my dad,” said Lauren.

“He’d been to America on business and brought me back a packet of jellybeans.

“I ate a couple and instantly had this horrible taste in my mouth. My mum had to pull over and I was violently sick. It turned out they had been laced with peanuts.”

Her worried parents took her to their doctor and, despite never having shown previous symptoms, blood tests detected a peanut allergy.

Other anxious moments included increasingly nasty reactions after eating a stir-fry and at a snack bar.

By then, attacks left her tongue so swollen she was gasping for air.

But her woes deepened when she popped in for some fast food.

“I had a burger and chips and had another bad attack,” said the former wedding coordinator who has just set up a social media marketing company.

“I knew there were no peanuts but further tests showed I was allergic to all nuts and seeds. It turned out it was the sesame seeds on the bun that were the problem.”

As Lauren’s condition worsened, she found she didn’t have to actually eat anything to become ill.

“Just the smell in the air is enough,” she explains. “I walked into a birthday party and some nuts on the table triggered an attack.

“I’ve had to have rooms checked in advance, nuts removed and surfaces cleaned.”

Subsequent testing has shown her hazelnut and sesame seed allergies have now passed, but experts told her the peanut allergy was the worst they’d ever seen.

The fear of a potentially lethal attack has had a major impact.

“Knowing you have a high risk of a life-threatening attack is scary,” Lauren admits. “I have anti-histamines and two EpiPens with me at all times.

“I wouldn’t dream of going out to eat without phoning to tell the restaurant of my condition.

“You get anxious about doing something new in case there’s a problem. It has held me back and made me less independent. You tend to want to be around family and friends who know the risks and what to do.”

Lauren also suffers hay fever and allergies to everything from dust mites to pets which can affect her asthma. She has bad eczema, too.

“I get everything,” she sighs.

She has been helped by a food alert service available through Allergy UK and backed the recent awareness week at the end of April.

“People need to know this can kill,” she said.

www.allergyuk.org

Helpline 01322 619898

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