Vinegar Allergy!

I was rushed to the hospital because of an allergic reaction to vinegar. I was vomiting violently and almost seizuring and could hardly breathe. That's never happened to me before. I told the ambulance attendant I was having an allergic reaction to vinegar and she didn't believe me. She thought I was having a traumtic reaction to something! It made me wonder how common vinegar allergy really is. i can imagine easily dying from it but it is scarely known about.

I would suggest seeing a doctor and dietician. I have a salycilate intolerance and I am not able to have vinegar as it is very high in salicylates. It is a chemical in certain foods- either occuring naturally or made synthetically and acts as a preservative. There may be other foods that you should also avoid which can build up in your system over a number of days. If I have vinegar my nose will become stuffy, I get a headache, my chest becomes tight, my throat becomes swollen and it becomes an effort to swallow and my heart races. If this ever happens take an antihistamine tablet!! I have also been given a Ventolin puffer (same as used by asthmatics) if I get a tight chest from a food reaction.

Only for those who only sweat with or without redness of the face and head, it is not an allergic reaction. I have this reaction to any kind of vinegar for as long as I remember and it is absolutely harmless (unless if it a rare complication of diabetes mellitus which need to be treat). It is called Gustatory sweating or Frey's syndrome. To make it short, it is linked to certain kind of food that produce strong salivation (not the same for every one, but often vinegar). It is cause by a «shortcut» in the nerves that activate the parotid glands (largest saliva producing structure in the mouth). Because of this shortcut, the signal that target the parotid glands will also stimulate some sweat glands in the face and head. It can be congenital or acquired specially after parotid surgery. I think there is some solutions but since this problem does not really bother me I never investigate it thoroughly. I hope that it will help you.

In response to Lola Heck: Yeah, this just happened to me too. I tried to have a spoonful of white wine vinegar; as soon as it hit the back of my throat, it closed up and I could barely breathe. I rinsed and gargled with water and it slowly went away. I didn't think it was an allergy until I got to this forum, I thought it was some kind of shock to the tonsils or something. The feeling I'm left with is as if I've had a sever sore throat, and it's difficult to talk. I've certainly never had a hint of this kind of allergy before, I've always enjoyed drinking vinegar.

I thought i was just odd.  Ever since i can remember the smell to vinegar makes me instantly throw up.  I can eat things that have vinegar in it but the moment that the smell hits my nose you had better have a bathroom around because i can not stop being sick. 

I have had a reaction to vinegar since I was young. I, too, get very red and hot in the face and neck, and I start sweating a lot. At that point, I stop eating that certain food so I am not sure what else would happen if I didn't. This always happened especially when eating salad with Italian dressing or cucumber salad with vinegar. I later found out through allergy testing (after I went into anaphylactic shock after having my second Hep B immunization) that I am allergic to everything tested for. I was put on allegra, zyrtec, singulair, allergy shots, vitamin b12 (to take before I go out to eat to help ward off any reactions from food preservatives), liquid benadryl (to take at the first sign of a reaction), given an inhaler and epipens (one will get me buy me about 10 minutes of time, so I carry multiples). That was in 2002. I still am on everything except the allegra and I still have breakthrough reactions. Another weird reaction I get is an itchy forehead and coughing when I laugh, which is due to me being allergic to my own endorphins (I am allergic to myself, I am am told by my doctor.) The most recent being this morning when a corn stalk leaf touched my hand and arm as I was picking beans from my garden. I immediately felt a hot stinging in these areas like I had been stung by a wasp or bee. I hurriedly washed them, which made the areas burn worse. I have never had issues with the corn before, so as my doctor says, "(I) must have already overloaded my system and that was the last straw." Allergies are no fun!

I absolutely love vinegar and mustard. I'm a 58 years old male, when I was in my teens I would sit and eat a whole small jar of mustard with a teaspoon. I'm just about as bad with vinegar. Actually I love anything sour, lemons are my favorite fruit, I can sit and eat a half a dozen with salt. Mustard has always made me sweat, but only under my eyes. I've noticed the last few years that vinegar makes my head sweat and itch. Although I think the itching is just from the sweat running down through my hair tickling my head. I found this forum searching for why vinegar made my head sweat.~ Ray

I really love vinegar based products such as dressing, chips, and malt vinegar for my fish. Every time I eat vinegar my head breaks out in to a sweat, and my checks start to tingle. I am now realizing that I may have a vinegar allergy. Does anyone know if this could be dangerous? Because I really do not want to stop eating vinegar. Thanks for reading! Luke  

I started experiencing allergy-like symptoms a few years ago as well. I love to add extra red wine vinegar to my red wine vinegar salad dressing to give it an extra bitey punch. This skin on my lips began feeling irritated, as well as my tongue somewhat. Later the skin was peely, and by the next day, it was like I'd had chapped lips really bad. Sometimes its worse than others. I read a long time ago it was something to do with the liver, so I went to an endocrinologist who ran a test and told me I had some enzymes out-of-whack but the further testing involved dangerous steroids so I opted out and figured I'd just live with it. It has never gotten really bad, but it is a nuisance. I crave vinegar a lot, so I can't imagine giving it up. Even when I eat fries, I have to drown them in ketchup. Crazy.

happens to me too....would love a cure! It's embarrasing to be in public when this happens and very hard to avoid completely. I forget sometimes and order things with vinegar....

Same thing happens to me except for the feeling like passing out I just get reaaly hot and start sweating.

I must have been having problems for years without knowing that it was vinegar causing my stomach issues. I never liked or ate pickles or olives, but dressing and sauces with vinegar just took my breath away as soon as I put it to my mouth. We didn't know why. Every time we ate out I would end up running for a bathroom within 30 minutes. At first we thought it was food poisoning. We even quit eating at certain places until one evening we ate a salad with dressing and it made me vomit, That was the first clue that I was allergic to vinegar. I now personally believe that vinegar is the culprit behind most acid reflux problems that people suffer from because vinegar is in everything. It takes vigilance to watch what you eat. It's everywhere.

I get the same thing. It really exacerbates my dandruff, which is already a huge problem.

OMG...i just come out of this horrible condition you have described. I use vinegar a lot..cleaning, drinking ect. Cider Vinegar mostly. four days ago i had two half ciders and fell sick as you describe..thinking it was the tipping point. Just over it. Mental fog and migraine is the worst symptom for me

I love to have cucumbers sliced with garlic pepper & vinegar based dressing but when I finish eating, the water pours from my skin. It runs in rivulets from my scalp & just below my eyes. Very uncomfortable but I can't find a low cal dressing without vinegar