The internet has defended a father who kicked his sister out after she brought gluten-containing food into his gluten-free kitchen.
Posted on Reddit’s r/AmITheA**hole forum, a man with the anonymous username u/poorunfortunatgluten shared his story to get opinions from the “AITA” community. The viral post has over 7,000 upvotes and 1,000 comments.
The original poster (OP) began his post by explaining that his daughter has severe celiac disease. Any cross contamination can set it back and it took years to properly diagnose and treat it. The OP wrote that she is underweight and has severe anxiety when it comes to food and won’t eat if she feels insecure.
OP has two kitchens in his house – a full kitchen upstairs and a kitchenette in the basement. The kitchen has a strict rule of only gluten-free, dairy-free and seafood-free food, while the kitchenette in the basement contains food with those ingredients.
Povozniuk/iStock/Getty Images Plus
For personal reasons, his sister and her children were transferred to OP. They live in rooms in the basement and have been told the strict rule about the kitchen upstairs. Less than a week after she moved in, the OP found a box of pasta in the kitchen and repeated the rule.
Weeks later, the OP’s daughter came to him in a panic because his sister was making fried chicken in the upstairs kitchen. The sister apologized but complained that the kitchen in the basement was “too small”. To be safe, they threw away all the used dishes and utensils and cleaned the kitchen.
Now that the kitchen was no longer guaranteed to be 100 percent safe, his daughter returned to therapy. They are working to help her feel safe again, but the OP is giving her food from a local gluten-free restaurant until then.
But things soon escalated.
“I come home and my daughter is having the worst panic attack I’ve ever seen. My mom and sister were in the kitchen making a whole Sunday dinner. Spaghetti, mozzarella sticks, garlic bread, the works. I lost. I ended up absolutely screaming at them that they were ruining my life and had threatened my daughter’s life for the last time and I had her,” he wrote.
“I threw all the food out in the yard and told my sister that if she really cared about her niece’s life, she could get the f**k out of my house. Now my mom is mad at me because kicked my sister and her kids out when they’re vulnerable for ‘a food allergy’ but I don’t care. She can even leave the kids here if she absolutely has to, but I’m done with it. We have a rule. ONE ,” he continued.
His wife agrees with him but believes that he should give her one last chance as she will have nowhere else to go as his mother cannot accept him.
Newsweek I reached out to u/poorunfortunatgluten for comment.
Newsweek has published several articles about the food conflict, including a mother who was dragged after she called a woman a “child abuser” for cooking frozen food for her child, and how the Internet slammed a sister who threw away food with worth $1,000 from her brother’s house.
What is celiac disease?
As defined by the Mayo Clinic, celiac disease is an immune reaction to eating anything with gluten. Gluten is a protein that can be found in wheat, barley and rye. Eating gluten with celiac disease can over time damage the lining of the small intestine and prevent the body from absorbing certain nutrients. This type of damage can cause diarrhea, fatigue, weight loss, bloating and anemia. It can also lead to other serious complications.
Some foods that a person with celiac disease should avoid — unless the doctor says otherwise — include beer, bread, many types of candy, cakes, pies, cereals, cookies, pasta, oatmeal, lots of salad dressing and lots of soups, according to Healthline.com. .
A doctor will diagnose a person with celiac disease by looking at data including family and medical history. They can also diagnose someone by performing blood tests and biopsies of the skin and small intestine, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
Redditors’ reactions
“[Not the a**hole]. She can choose a direction and go for it. How dare she stay in your house and risk your child’s health,” said u/CrystalQueen3000, receiving over 15,000 upvotes for their comment.
“[Not the a**hole]. Your daughter has a severe allergy and you explained this to your sister, who doesn’t seem to really understand the consequences of her actions. The first time, okay she forgot. Second time ok…I guess but the kitchen being too small is a poor excuse. THE THIRD TIME SHE COOKED A HEAVY, HEAVY GLUTEN DINNER; you are within your rights to lose it and kick them out. Three strikes and out. It’s your house, your rules. If they can’t follow them, then they can find somewhere else to live,” u/DesignerAsh_ wrote.
U/TinyRascalSaurus said, “[Not the a**hole]. If a person intolerant to gluten eats something that contains it, it can permanently damage their intestines. Even small amounts can cause harm. Your sister was putting your daughter at risk of medical harm. She knew the rules. She knew your daughter’s safety was at risk. She chose to repeatedly flout the rules anyway.”
“[Not the a**hole], You clearly explained the situation and she chose to ignore it, in the latter case quite badly. She needs to understand that your family is absolutely number 1, and for no small reason. she is now in a very bad position, but now she is a big girl and consequences arise from your actions. There has to be a point where you just say, ‘ok, this is it – we’re done here,’ commented u/bobbypet.