A south London woman was hospitalised after consuming excessive amounts of spicy Wingstop chicken wings. Nea-Jude Ioannou, 22, was admitted to King's College Hospital in London with severe abdominal pain that left her bedridden.
Paramedics suspected appendicitis
Paramedics initially thought her appendix had burst, but after six hours in A&E, a CT scan revealed severe constipation caused by eating too many Wingstop takeaways. Nea-Jude had been ordering two portions of the hottest flavour, Atomic, each week. The Atomic flavour contains Habanero peppers, registering between 200,000 and 350,000 Scoville Heat Units.
She said: "It started with pains in my lower abdomen that were building and building, then for three days I was basically bed-ridden unable to move. It was the worst pain that I have ever felt in my life. I wasn't able to eat or sleep because of the pain."
Hospital visit and diagnosis
The incident occurred in February 2024. After five days of symptoms including night sweats, pins and needles, and pain when breathing, she called 111 and an ambulance took her to A&E. She arrived at 6pm and left at 7am the following morning. Her father even flew back from New York to be with her.
Doctors told her that such cases are becoming increasingly common among Gen Z. She attributes this to food influencers posting mukbang videos featuring extreme foods. "There is such a culture around spicy food and mukbang culture now with trying the craziest foods," she said. "I think mukbangs are contributing to the issue."
Blame on food apps and marketing
Nea-Jude also blames money apps for making takeaways more accessible, along with fast food chains targeting students. "They were really marketing to students that you could buy now and pay later," she said. "Especially as a student it was really appealing because it was fast and the meal deals you could get were cheap for Deliveroo."
Medics gave her pain relief and a two-week course of laxatives, which took effect after three days, bringing relief. Since then, she has focused on her health, eating more whole foods, and visiting her GP regularly. She still occasionally eats Wingstop but avoids the Atomic flavour.
Social media response
After sharing her story on TikTok, many others said they had experienced similar issues. "It really made me evaluate what I am putting in my body," she said. "The food in moderation is fine, it is just the habit that I had with it."
