Mythic tales suggest the real-life Count Dracula - Vlad III - had the same disorder, which inspired the fable of vampires who hate garlic and are sunlight averse
She is literally a real-life Count Dracula. A 32-year-old woman from Minnesota in the US suffers from a rare metabolic disorder – known as the vampire disease, which causes her life-threatening pain, migraine, constipation, and vomiting for days after she eats garlic.
According to doctors, Phoenix Nightingale suffers from acute intermittent porphyria - a very rare disorder that results in debilitating symptoms triggered by an allergy to sulfur – found in abundance in garlic and could even result in a “fatal attack” if she ingests too much.
Mythic tales suggest the real-life Count Dracula - Vlad III - had the same disorder, which inspired the fable of vampires who hate garlic and are sunlight averse. “It comes from the legend about them needing to avoid garlic, having to stay out of the sun, looking pale, and having receding teeth,” Nightingale told the New York Post. “Neurological side effects can make people think that those with the condition must have been monsters or are possessed.”
Nightingale says she completely avoids any foods containing sulfur, as it could be fatal for her. Symptoms, she added, can “come out of nowhere” or start to set in weeks ahead of an attack. “I’m very careful about what I put in my body. I avoid a lot of food. I stick to the food that I know is safe. I can’t even take most medications,” she said.
“I haven’t eaten garlic since I was diagnosed. I could never eat garlic bread. It could send me into an attack,” she continued, describing her “life-threatening” attacks as two-day bouts of vomiting, sometimes 60 times over the course of an attack, and the potential for breathing difficulties.
The diagnosis came last year
Nightingale said she has experienced nearly 500 attacks over the course of her life while searching for answers, as her diagnosis came just last year. “I had one attack where I didn’t go to hospital, and it went on for 40 hours. It was non-stop vomiting, losing consciousness, screaming, and crying,” she said.
For Nightingale, it is very difficult to eat out at restaurants as garlic is mostly used in all cuisines. She also avoids grapes, soy, alcohol, and coffee.
“When I go out for dinner unless it’s a place I know, I look at a menu and I cry because I don’t know what I can eat and prefer to stick with my safe foods,” she explained.
What does garlic allergy do?
According to experts, those who suffer from garlic allergy can have a range of symptoms, from mild to severe, including:
- A red raised rash or hives that cause itching or skin discolouration
- A tingling or itchy feeling in the mouth along with swelling of the lips, tongue, or throat
- Breathlessness or difficulty breathing
- Severe stomachache, diarrhoea, and or nausea
- Rapid pulse, dizziness and fainting
A life-threatening allergic reaction also causes anaphylaxis which leads to tightened airways, swollen throat, rapid or weak pulse, dizziness, light-headedness, and loss of consciousness.
What is acute intermittent porphyria?
The Mayo Clinic says porphyria is a group of rare disorders that result from a buildup of natural chemicals known as porphyrins in your body, which help make hemoglobin. Eight enzymes are needed to change porphyrins into heme. Without enough of any of these enzymes, porphyrins build up in the body. High levels of porphyrins can cause major problems, mainly in the nervous system and skin.
There are two general types of porphyria - acute porphyria, which begins rapidly and mainly affects your nervous system, and cutaneous porphyria – which affects your skin. Doctors say that even though porphyria cannot be cured, medicines and certain lifestyle changes may help you manage it. Treatment for symptoms depends on the type of porphyria you have.
Signs of symptoms of porphyria
A few signs and symptoms of porphyria include:
- Severe pain in the belly, chest, legs or back.
- Digestive problems, such as constipation, nausea, and vomiting
- Muscle pain, tingling, numbness, weakness or paralysis
- Red or brown urine
- Mental changes, such as anxiety, hallucinations, or mental confusion
- Rapid or irregular heartbeats you can feel – known as palpitations
- Breathing problems including breathlessness
- High blood pressure
- Seizures
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