Teen’s “Gluten Intolerance” Turns Out to Be a Giant Melon-Sized Hairball
What began as a suspected food sensitivity took a bizarre and shocking turn for one UK mom.
When 14-year-old Erin started complaining of stomach aches last November, her mother, Jodie Collins, assumed it was something ordinary — perhaps gluten intolerance, a reaction to certain foods, or even menstrual cramps. Nothing hinted at the extraordinary truth lurking inside her daughter’s stomach.
Initial tests revealed nothing unusual, so life went on. But by May, Erin’s pain had grown sharper and more frequent. Alarmed by the sudden escalation, Jodie rushed her to the local hospital, determined to get real answers.
The scans delivered them — but not the kind she was expecting. Doctors had found a large, rock-hard mass lodged in Erin’s stomach. It wasn’t food at all. It was hair.
Erin was suffering from trichobezoar, a rare condition in which swallowed hair gradually accumulates in the digestive tract. In her case, the hairball had grown to a staggering 8.3 inches — about the size of a small melon.
She was quickly transferred to Bristol Children’s Hospital, where surgeons successfully removed the enormous mass, leaving her family stunned at just how close they had come to missing the real cause behind her “gluten intolerance” symptoms.
What Jodie Collins thought was her daughter’s food intolerance turned out to be something far more shocking — and potentially deadly.
Fourteen-year-old Erin had been battling mysterious, crippling stomach cramps for six months. At first, her mom suspected lactose or gluten intolerance, maybe even menstrual pain. Initial scans revealed nothing unusual, and life carried on. But by May, the cramps became so intense and frequent that Erin often missed school.
Desperate for answers, Jodie pushed doctors to look deeper. That’s when an MRI uncovered the truth: Erin’s stomach was home to a massive, rock-hard ball of hair — measuring 8.3 inches across, about the size of a small melon.
The diagnosis was trichobezoar, a rare condition caused by swallowing hair, which then builds up in the digestive tract over time. In Erin’s case, it had stretched her stomach to three times its normal size, left her anemic, and caused serious nutritional deficiencies.
Surgeons at Bristol Children’s Hospital spent five hours removing the enormous blockage. Doctors believe Erin may have been chewing or swallowing hair in her sleep without realizing it — a habit possibly linked to her lifelong love of twirling hair.
“I’ve never once seen her put hair in her mouth,” Jodie said. “But as a baby, she’d grab my hair while I bottle-fed her and twist it. She’s always been very tactile and played with hair. It was shocking to learn she might have been swallowing it unknowingly.”
Just 10 days after surgery, Erin was already on the road to recovery. Now, Jodie is determined to warn other parents that even a seemingly harmless habit like hair-twirling can have dangerous consequences.
When doctors finally removed the mystery mass causing 14-year-old Erin Collins months of agony, even they were stunned — and a little sickened.
The melon-sized trichobezoar, an 8.3-inch ball of tightly packed hair, had been growing inside her stomach for years, slowly stretching it to three times its normal size and leaving her anemic, malnourished, and constantly in pain.
“The surgeons said the smell was unbelievable,” Erin’s mother, Jodie, recalled. “I’d imagine it was like your worst plughole. They said it was putrid — one of the biggest they’d ever dealt with.”
Erin had first complained of sharp stomach cramps last November, but early scans revealed nothing unusual. It wasn’t until the pain worsened in May that an MRI exposed the shocking truth. The mass had been blocking food from being processed properly — and if left untreated, doctors warned, Erin could have collapsed from complications.
Over a grueling five-hour surgery at Bristol Children’s Hospital, the blockage was removed in one piece. Thankfully, it hadn’t yet made its way into her intestines, where it could have been far more dangerous.
To help her recover, Erin was given a nutrient-rich feeding bag to replenish lost vitamins and minerals. She spent five days on a nil-by-mouth routine while her stomach was drained and monitored. Even now, her stomach may remain enlarged for years as her body adjusts.
Jodie believes her daughter may have been chewing or swallowing hair in her sleep, a habit linked to her lifelong love of twirling hair. “We’ve bought her a bonnet to wear at night, just in case,” she said. She also urges parents to watch for similar habits in their own children, suggesting fidget toys or even cognitive behavioral therapy in more serious cases.
“This took up her whole stomach,” Jodie said. “It’s shocking how something that seems harmless can turn into something so dangerous.”