What is the weirdest food phobia? 7 shocking and bizarre fears

There’s some pretty fierce competition when it comes to the world’s weirdest food phobia. For most of us, terror come in fairly conventional forms. Zombies, global warming and wildly erratic American presidents are all good reasons to be afraid in the current climate.

Yet, for all the very real dangers that surround us, there are some people who remain inexplicably petrified of seemingly benign things – like cucumber.  

Pretty odd, right? But what are the weirdest food phobias? Let’s find out because there is a lot of competition.

The weirdest food phobias will seriously surprise you (Credit: Pexels)

What is the weirdest food phobia?

Food phobias might seem illogical, but can affect everything from leaving the house to food and drink.

Here is our collection of the world’s weirdest food phobias.

READ MORE: THIS is how long can you safely leave your food at room temperature

1. Arachibutyrophobia

Given how many people are allergic to peanuts, you could be forgiven for giving them a wide berth. However, this weirdly specific phobia refers not to the nuts themselves, but to the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth.

Anyone who suffers may seem more than a little nuts to the rest of us.

The fear of peanuts is very real (Credit: Pexels)

2. Acerophobia

While no one likes being surprised by an errant lemon, an outright refusal to go near anything sour at all might be a step too far. Nonetheless, any acerophobics in the room would feel that their fear of all sour foods is totally justified.

They may have lost some of their zest for life.

Acerophobia is the fear of sour food (Credit: Pexels)

3. Lachanophobia

Every child has at some point spent several hours shunting unwanted greens around a plate in the hope that they might magically disappear.

READ MORE: 8 surprising foods that are bad for your teeth

Anyone with lachanophobia, on the other hand, wouldn’t touch them with a barge pole, on account of their crippling fear of all vegetables. Wouldn’t we all have loved that excuse as a five-year-old?

The fear of vegetables isn’t just an excuse (Credit: Pixabay)

4. Mageirocophobia

None of us need much of an excuse to spend an evening dining out. For fearful mageirocophobics, however, this habit is more a necessity than a treat.

Absolutely terrified of cooking, these unlucky diners are doomed to a lifetime spent washing up whilst everyone else makes a mess in the kitchen.

Mageirocophobia is the fear of cookingt (Credit: Alamy/Panther Media GmbH)

5. Phagophobia

There are a few things that are considered indispensable aspects of eating. One of them is swallowing your food. Unfortunately, this unavoidable action makes every mealtime absolute torture for phagophobics.

One swallow may not make a summer, but for anyone with this fear, one swallow is more than enough.

The fear of swallowing can cause serious problems (Credit: Alamy/Westend61 GmbH)

6. Deipnophobia

As someone who suffers from permanent social anxiety, the idea of awkward dinner party exchanges fills me with a sense of dread unmatched by almost anything else on earth.

READ MORE: 7 causes for loss and changes in taste

However, even I wouldn’t go so far as to say I’m so petrified of pre-dinner small talk that I’m a bona fide deipnophobe. Strangers may be scary, but I can always put up with them when there’s food on offer.

A fear of dining in public is no joke (Credit: Pexels)

7. Geumophobia

For anyone who enjoys good food, it seems like a fate worse than death to suddenly develop a crippling fear of taste.

READ MORE: 7 rare food allergies you never knew existed

This horror show is a reality that those unlucky souls with geumophobia have to put up with every single day. Whether or not they are tasteless in every aspect of life is unclear.

Geumophobia is the fear of tasting (Credit: Alamy/Anna Berkut)

There’s no rhyme or reason to a phobia. Though there are many considerably more common conditions, it’s important to remember that almost anything can be a source of fear.

If nothing else, these seven serve to remind us that anything can be scary if you think about it in the wrong way. Even the weirdest food phobias are nothing to laugh at.