- Tyler Field’s daughter Imelda suffered burns after eating an innocent stick of celery
A distraught mother claims her daughter’s lunch of an innocent stalk of celery left her face covered in burns – as it turned into giant hogweed in the sun.
Tyler Field was shocked when her seven-month-old daughter Imelda Sykes developed a red rash on her face and hands.
The child had been eating a celery stalk for just 15 minutes in the sun on Sunday, May 19, when her skin color immediately began to change color.
Concerned that Imelda was having an allergic reaction or sunburn, Tyler told a close friend what had happened when she learned about the risks of eating celery in the sun.
After her own investigation, the mother-of-two discovered that Imelda was suffering from phytophotodermatitis – also known as ‘margarita burns’.
Mother Tyler Field was shocked after her daughter Imelda Sykes developed a red rash and blisters after chewing a piece of celery in the sun
Although it initially looked like Imelda was getting away with just a red rash, the next day painful, fluid-filled blisters began to break out on her arm and mouth.
The 25-year-old mother said she felt ‘massive mother guilt’ and worries her daughter may be left with permanent scarring from the skin reaction
This is a skin reaction in which the sap of certain plants, such as giant hogweed, but also carrots, celery and limes, gets on the skin and is then exposed to sunlight. The affected areas become acutely red and blisters often develop.
Tyler, who lives in Reading, Berkshire, believed Imelda got away with just a red rash – before painful, fluid-filled blisters started breaking out on her baby’s arm and mouth the next day.
The 25-year-old said she felt ‘massive mum guilt’ and fears her daughter will be scarred for life by the vegetable-induced skin reaction.
Tyler, a stay-at-home mom, said, “I gave Imelda a celery stick as something to chew on, but I never really questioned it.
‘She was then sitting outside in the sun with her sun hat on. Within three hours I noticed that her cheeks and hands were a little red.
‘I couldn’t understand it at first. I thought she had had an allergic reaction, but she had eaten celery before and she had never eaten anything new.
‘It looked like burns, I was really worried. I thought she got sunburned somehow.
‘Then I met my girlfriend for dinner that evening and told her what had happened. She said, “She didn’t have any celery, did she?” My heart just dropped.
“Apart from her, none of my friends had heard of it before. I looked online and saw that it could cause all kinds of burns and blisters and thought we could get away with it. She only had a little redness around her mouth and hands.
‘But the next morning she had large, fluid-filled blisters around her hands and around her face. It’s obvious where she had the celery on her hand and around her mouth.
‘I also had them on my arms, from where she had touched me. You can see the little fingerprints on my arm. I was so shocked.
‘The next day the blisters turned into weeping skin. Then it started to scab over and she still has a lot of redness on her face and hands.”
The blisters later turned into weeping skin, and even mom Tyler suffered some burns on her arms where her daughter had touched her
The next morning, Imelda had large, fluid-filled blisters around her mouth and hands
Tyler wants to warn other parents about phytophotodermatitis before other children fall victim and also suffer burns.
Tyler said, “I cried into my boyfriend’s chest. I felt so guilty and I know it’s completely irrational, but as a mother you feel like you need to know these things. I’ll never make that mistake again.
“It’s a summer food that everyone eats. It’s really worrying. I think it’s more common in children because they are messy eaters and it gets all over their skin.
‘But throughout this whole thing, I’ve been really surprised at how little people actually know about this.
‘It’s possible that this could scar her for a very long time. I just want to make people aware and let them know that it is celery burn. It’s just not widely known yet and needs to be known more widely.’