An innocent kiss on the lips can be anything but for Caroline Cray Quinn, who risks death with every kiss.
Ms Quinn, 25, from Boston, Massachusetts, has mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), a rare condition that affects only one in 150,000 people.
MCAS is a condition that causes blood cells to inappropriately overreact to certain foods, fragrances, and other potential environmental factors.
Ms. Quinn’s MCAS is particularly severe and has limited her ability to eat only two foods: oats and a specially prepared nutritional formula. Any other food could cause her to have a potentially fatal allergic reaction.
Caroline Cray Quinn has mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), a rare condition that affects only one in 150,000 people
The condition means that even kissing someone who has eaten a food she is allergic to can cause a dangerous reaction, which can make managing her love life a bit complicated
Even kissing someone who has eaten a food she is allergic to can trigger a dangerous reaction, complicating her love life.
As such, she has developed a strict set of rules that any potential love interest must adhere to before touching their lips.
Ms. Quinn, a Boston-based healthcare recruiter, recently detailed these dating guidelines in a TikTok video that now has 1.7 million views.
“If someone wants to kiss me, he shouldn’t eat anything for three hours beforehand,” she said.
‘They are also not allowed to eat any of my top six anaphylactic allergens – peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, mustard, seafood or kiwi – 24 hours before kissing me.
“And they have to brush their teeth before they kiss me.”
She was given these lines by a member of her medical team following her diagnosis after asking the “unconventional and awkward” question: “can I kiss a boy?”
Ms Quinn said the rules had proven successful for the most part.
“It’s been pretty much smooth sailing with those lines, but I’ve had a handful of little reactions while kissing someone or after kissing someone,” she said.
“My mouth starts to itch, my lips and my tongue start to itch, and as soon as I feel that, I immediately stop and let them know that I’m feeling reactive.
‘If necessary, I immediately brush my teeth and take emergency medication.
“It never really progressed beyond a little blushing and a little headache.”
She currently has a boyfriend, Ryan, who she says likes to follow the rules, and enjoys the same meals as her when they are together.
Although Ms. Quinn had severe food allergies growing up, she was not diagnosed with MACS until 2017.
‘I have had a severe food allergy to peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, mustard and kiwi since I was two years old, but otherwise I was completely healthy.
‘I became ill with MCAS in September 2017 after a true allergic reaction to cross-contamination with nuts culminated in a series of anaphylactic episodes to foods I was not allergic to.
‘After a long waiting list of eight months, I ended up with an MCAS specialist who officially diagnosed me.’
She added: ‘(MCAS) presents with many uncomfortable and life-threatening symptoms such as difficulty breathing, swelling/itching in the throat and mouth, loss of consciousness, low blood pressure and hives/rash.
‘To prevent MCAS flare-ups and MCAS symptoms, I avoid triggers such as food, animal fur/dander, mold, dust, heat and certain odors.’
She didn’t even kiss anyone for two years as her MCAS symptoms continued to flare up, which later turned out to be a mold problem in her home.
Despite the dangers that MCAS poses, not just to dating and intimacy, but to general life, Ms. Quinne insists on not limiting herself.
“I’m so allergic to dogs and cats, and it’s technically a risk for me to just leave the house or go to the beach,” she said.
‘I could be lying on the beach sunbathing and suddenly a dog could come up to me and lick my face.
“But I don’t not go to the beach because I’m afraid of the worst case scenario.”
She currently has a boyfriend, Ryan, who she said happily adheres to her dating rules, and enjoys the same meals as her when they are together.
Although Ms. Quinn had severe food allergies growing up, she was not diagnosed with MACS until 2017
Ms Quinn’s MCAS is particularly severe and has left her unable to eat only two foods: oats and a nutritional formula specially formulated for people with the condition. Others could see her having a potentially fatal allergic reaction.
Ms. Quinn even suggested that her dating rules could be helpful for people who are unsure of a prospective partner’s long-term intentions.
“I know it’s a little unconventional to have to vet your kissing candidates, but it’s a low-key dating cheat code,” she said.
“It immediately weeds out all the guys who don’t care about you.
“For example, if they have to follow a few rules to kiss you, then they clearly care, they’re clearly interested, and they’re willing to put in a lot of effort.”
She joked, “So if you ever want to know if a guy is serious about you, just tell him you have MACS and tell him to follow the three rules and you’ll know right away.”
Allergies can cause a variety of symptoms, but the most serious is a dangerous inflammation of the airways called anaphylaxis.
This can make it difficult or even impossible to breathe and can cause the body to go into a cardiac emergency, such as cardiac arrest, due to a lack of oxygen.
Ms. Quinn isn’t the only person to experience allergic reactions from intimacy.
There have been rare medical cases of people with peanut allergies experiencing reactions due to small traces of the nuts entering their partner’s semen.
However, such cases have only been documented a handful of times.