Strange are the ways the human mind works. Sometimes, one can pet a tiger with ease, while at others, the mere thought of mushrooms on a plate or even eating with chopsticks can send shivers down your spine. Food phobias can be as scary as the fear of flying or heights. Here's looking at some of the unusual food phobias.

A meat-lover's nightmate

There are a few phobias that could haunt meat eaters in their worst nightmares...

1. Alektorophobia is the fear of chicken and, hence, even words like, 'It tastes like chicken' could be catastrophic for them.

2. Carnophobia is the fear of meat in general. These people try and avoid even the sight of meat stalls.
3. Ichthyophobia is the fear of fish. People suffering from this particular phobia cannot even look at aquariums, leave alone cooked fish.

4. Ostraconophobia is the fear of shellfish. While one would think shellfish allergy is scary, these people say that their fear is far worse.

No veggies here

If you thought meat phobias are scary, take a look at these ones...

1. Allumphobia is the fear of garlic. These people try and stay away even from the smell and sight of garlic in a market or kitchen.

2. Lachanophobia is the fear of vegetables. While this would seem god-sent for kids wanting to stay away from vegetables, it is a scary proposition in reality.

3. Mycophobia is the fear of mushrooms. These people get repulsed at the thought that mushrooms are fungi and grow on dirt.
How about these excuses

And here are some bizarre phobias that relate to cooking and eating in general...

1. Cibophobia is the fear of eating. Now, think about the prospect of fighting every meal and getting over the fear every single time. Scary, huh

2. Geumophobia is the fear of taste. These people aren't scared of food as such, but the thought of any new flavour scares them.

3. Phagophobia is the fear of swallowing. This person would rather wish he had cibophobia, considering he would never put the food in his mouth at all.

4. Mageirocophobia is the fear of cooking. Now that's a convenient excuse for living off home delivery and eating out, eh

5. Consecotaleophobia is the fear of eating with chopsticks. They fear that the chopsticks could prove fatal to them, in some cases.

6. Arachibutyrophobia is the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth. How bizarre!

Source: Times of India

BDST: 1739 HRS, JUNE 24, 2015
Edited by:  Sharmina Islam, Lifestyle Editor