What Is Arachibutyrophobia? (Fear of Peanut Butter)

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatmentKeep in Mind

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Symptoms

Causes

Diagnosis

Treatment

Keep in Mind

Arachibutyrophobia is the fear of having peanut butter stick to the roof of your mouth. It does not actually involve the fear of peanut butter as an object. It is often rooted in a more generalizedphobiaofchoking(pseudodysphagia) or of sticky textures, but it may also occur alone.

Like all phobias, arachibutyrophobia varies in severity from person to person. For instance, some people are able to consume small quantities of peanut butter, perhaps as a dip for vegetables, while others are afraid to eat peanut butter at all. In some cases, the fear extends to other peanut products, from peanut butter ice cream to peanut sauces.

At a GlanceIf you have an extreme fear of getting peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth, then you might have arachibutyrophobia. What makes this different from normal fear is the intensity, avoidance, and disruption to daily life. Fortunately, arachibutyrophobia is very treatable with cognitive behavioral or exposure therapies. Keep reading to learn more about how to recognize arachibutyrophobia, what causes it, and how to get help.

At a Glance

If you have an extreme fear of getting peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth, then you might have arachibutyrophobia. What makes this different from normal fear is the intensity, avoidance, and disruption to daily life. Fortunately, arachibutyrophobia is very treatable with cognitive behavioral or exposure therapies. Keep reading to learn more about how to recognize arachibutyrophobia, what causes it, and how to get help.

What Is a Phobia?

Symptoms of Arachibutyrophobia

Like other types of phobias, a person with arachibutyrophobia may experience a number of emotional, physical, and behavioral symptoms. Common symptoms associated with the fear of having peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth include:

What Causes Arachibutyrophobia?

Arachibutyrophobia is a type of specific phobia. While the exact causes of specific phobias are not fully understood, there are a number of factors that can play a role in their onset:

The Psychology of Fear

Peanut Allergy May Be the Trigger

On the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s list of the eight foods a person is most likely to have a severe allergic reaction to, peanuts are listed (along with tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, milk, eggs, and wheat).

While being afraid of having peanut butter stuck to the top of your mouth might seem like an unusual thing to be fearful of, the prevalence of peanut allergies and how serious they can be makes it clear why this phobia exists.

As you can trace many specific phobias back to a traumatic incident in the past, seeing someone have an allergy attack as the result of eating peanut butter as a child, maybe at school or daycare, can have a long-lasting effect—and be the trigger behind someone’s arachibutyrophobia.

On the other hand, you might be able to trace your fear to choking on peanut butter as a child, although you might have been too young to remember it now. Or you may have seen someone choking on it on television.

Choking on peanut butter is actually quite common. In fact, according to a report on adults and children with developmental disabilities in New Jersey, sandwiches were the leading cause of choking incidents, with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich involved in the majority of cases.

How Is Arachibutyrophobia Diagnosed?

Arachibutyrophobia is not a distinct diagnosis in the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (DSM-5-TR), the manual that doctors and mental health professionals use to diagnose mental health conditions. Instead, it would be diagnosed as a specific phobia.

Specific phobiasare intense, irrational fears of a specific situation or object.

To be diagnosed with a specific phobia, a person must experience:

Here is an example patient scenario: Jennifer was reluctant to eat peanut butter after nearly choking on a large, sticky peanut butter and jelly sandwich. When she began to avoid peanut sauces as well, Jennifer’s therapist diagnosed her with arachibutyrophobia.

How Common Is Arachibutyrophobia?Prevalence estimates vary. The National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH) suggests that 9.1% of U.S. adults have experienced a specific phobia in the past year.Another study found that around 5.5% of the worldwide population had a specific phobia in the previous year.It’s not uncommon to have more than one phobia or to misdiagnose your condition without professional help.

How Common Is Arachibutyrophobia?

Prevalence estimates vary. The National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH) suggests that 9.1% of U.S. adults have experienced a specific phobia in the past year.Another study found that around 5.5% of the worldwide population had a specific phobia in the previous year.It’s not uncommon to have more than one phobia or to misdiagnose your condition without professional help.

How Common Are Phobias?

Treatment for Arachibutyrophobia

Like othertypes of specific phobias, arachibutyrophobia is highly treatable. First-line treatments for this phobia include:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

CBT helps you replace anxious thoughts with more positive, realistic ones and develop coping skills that will help you manage feelings of fear.

Exposure Therapy

Exposure therapyis a form of CBT that involves progressive exposure to the source of your fear. Repeated exposure to that stimulus in a safe environment can lead to the gradual reduction of fear symptoms. In many cases, it also involves practicing CBT andrelaxation techniquesduring exposure to reduce anxious thoughts and combat anxiety.

Research has shown that exposure therapy can lead to long-lasting relief of phobia symptoms.

Depending on the severity of your phobia, successful treatment can take as little as one to three sessions.

Of course, some people simply avoid eating peanut butter. Remember, too, thattreatment for a specific phobiais only needed when that phobia causes a person distress and/or an impairment in their everyday functioning.

While arachibutyrophobia is an uncommon type of specific phobia, it can be serious and create significant disruptions in your life. Professional treatment can be very effective and help you return to normal functioning and manage your feelings of fear. If you think you might have this phobia, talk to a doctor or mental health professional about treatments that can help.

If you or a loved one are struggling with symptoms of a phobia, contact theSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helplineat1-800-662-4357for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.

If you or a loved one are struggling with symptoms of a phobia, contact theSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helplineat1-800-662-4357for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.

For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.

What Are the Rarest Phobias?

11 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Sahoo S, Hazari N, Padhy SK.Choking phobia: An uncommon phobic disorder, treated with behavior therapy: A case report and review of the literature.Shanghai Arch Psychiatry. 2016 Dec;28(6):349-352. doi:10.11919/j.issn.1002-0829.216055Eaton WW, Bienvenu OJ, Miloyan B.Specific phobias.Lancet Psychiatry. 2018;5(8):678-686. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(18)30169-XSawyers C, Ollendick T, Brotman MA, et al.The genetic and environmental structure of fear and anxiety in juvenile twins.Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2019;180(3):204-212. doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32714Fox NA, Zeytinoglu S, Valadez EA, Buzzell GA, Morales S, Henderson HA.Annual Research Review: Developmental pathways linking early behavioral inhibition to later anxiety.J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2023;64(4):537-561. doi:10.1111/jcpp.13702Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Food allergies. Reviewed June 8, 2020.New Jersey Department of Health and Human Services.Health and safety alert choking.American Psychiatric Association (APA).Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed, text revision. Washington, D.C.; 2022.National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.Wardenaar KJ, Lim CCW, Al-Hamzawi AO, et al.The cross-national epidemiology of specific phobia in the World Mental Health Surveys[published correction appears in Psychol Med. 2018 Apr;48(5):878].Psychol Med. 2017;47(10):1744-1760. doi:10.1017/S0033291717000174Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: a rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1Lange I, Goossens L, Leibold N, et al.Brain and behavior changes following exposure therapy predict outcome at 8-year follow-up.Psychother Psychosom. 2016;85(4):238-240. doi:10.1159/000442292

11 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Sahoo S, Hazari N, Padhy SK.Choking phobia: An uncommon phobic disorder, treated with behavior therapy: A case report and review of the literature.Shanghai Arch Psychiatry. 2016 Dec;28(6):349-352. doi:10.11919/j.issn.1002-0829.216055Eaton WW, Bienvenu OJ, Miloyan B.Specific phobias.Lancet Psychiatry. 2018;5(8):678-686. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(18)30169-XSawyers C, Ollendick T, Brotman MA, et al.The genetic and environmental structure of fear and anxiety in juvenile twins.Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2019;180(3):204-212. doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32714Fox NA, Zeytinoglu S, Valadez EA, Buzzell GA, Morales S, Henderson HA.Annual Research Review: Developmental pathways linking early behavioral inhibition to later anxiety.J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2023;64(4):537-561. doi:10.1111/jcpp.13702Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Food allergies. Reviewed June 8, 2020.New Jersey Department of Health and Human Services.Health and safety alert choking.American Psychiatric Association (APA).Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed, text revision. Washington, D.C.; 2022.National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.Wardenaar KJ, Lim CCW, Al-Hamzawi AO, et al.The cross-national epidemiology of specific phobia in the World Mental Health Surveys[published correction appears in Psychol Med. 2018 Apr;48(5):878].Psychol Med. 2017;47(10):1744-1760. doi:10.1017/S0033291717000174Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: a rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1Lange I, Goossens L, Leibold N, et al.Brain and behavior changes following exposure therapy predict outcome at 8-year follow-up.Psychother Psychosom. 2016;85(4):238-240. doi:10.1159/000442292

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Sahoo S, Hazari N, Padhy SK.Choking phobia: An uncommon phobic disorder, treated with behavior therapy: A case report and review of the literature.Shanghai Arch Psychiatry. 2016 Dec;28(6):349-352. doi:10.11919/j.issn.1002-0829.216055Eaton WW, Bienvenu OJ, Miloyan B.Specific phobias.Lancet Psychiatry. 2018;5(8):678-686. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(18)30169-XSawyers C, Ollendick T, Brotman MA, et al.The genetic and environmental structure of fear and anxiety in juvenile twins.Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2019;180(3):204-212. doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32714Fox NA, Zeytinoglu S, Valadez EA, Buzzell GA, Morales S, Henderson HA.Annual Research Review: Developmental pathways linking early behavioral inhibition to later anxiety.J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2023;64(4):537-561. doi:10.1111/jcpp.13702Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Food allergies. Reviewed June 8, 2020.New Jersey Department of Health and Human Services.Health and safety alert choking.American Psychiatric Association (APA).Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed, text revision. Washington, D.C.; 2022.National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.Wardenaar KJ, Lim CCW, Al-Hamzawi AO, et al.The cross-national epidemiology of specific phobia in the World Mental Health Surveys[published correction appears in Psychol Med. 2018 Apr;48(5):878].Psychol Med. 2017;47(10):1744-1760. doi:10.1017/S0033291717000174Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: a rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1Lange I, Goossens L, Leibold N, et al.Brain and behavior changes following exposure therapy predict outcome at 8-year follow-up.Psychother Psychosom. 2016;85(4):238-240. doi:10.1159/000442292

Sahoo S, Hazari N, Padhy SK.Choking phobia: An uncommon phobic disorder, treated with behavior therapy: A case report and review of the literature.Shanghai Arch Psychiatry. 2016 Dec;28(6):349-352. doi:10.11919/j.issn.1002-0829.216055

Eaton WW, Bienvenu OJ, Miloyan B.Specific phobias.Lancet Psychiatry. 2018;5(8):678-686. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(18)30169-X

Sawyers C, Ollendick T, Brotman MA, et al.The genetic and environmental structure of fear and anxiety in juvenile twins.Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2019;180(3):204-212. doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32714

Fox NA, Zeytinoglu S, Valadez EA, Buzzell GA, Morales S, Henderson HA.Annual Research Review: Developmental pathways linking early behavioral inhibition to later anxiety.J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2023;64(4):537-561. doi:10.1111/jcpp.13702

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Food allergies. Reviewed June 8, 2020.

New Jersey Department of Health and Human Services.Health and safety alert choking.

American Psychiatric Association (APA).Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed, text revision. Washington, D.C.; 2022.

National Institute of Mental Health.Specific phobia.

Wardenaar KJ, Lim CCW, Al-Hamzawi AO, et al.The cross-national epidemiology of specific phobia in the World Mental Health Surveys[published correction appears in Psychol Med. 2018 Apr;48(5):878].Psychol Med. 2017;47(10):1744-1760. doi:10.1017/S0033291717000174

Thng CEW, Lim-Ashworth NSJ, Poh BZQ, Lim CG.Recent developments in the intervention of specific phobia among adults: a rapid review.F1000Res. 2020;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-195. doi:10.12688/f1000research.20082.1

Lange I, Goossens L, Leibold N, et al.Brain and behavior changes following exposure therapy predict outcome at 8-year follow-up.Psychother Psychosom. 2016;85(4):238-240. doi:10.1159/000442292

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