A healthcare recruiter battling severe food allergies continues to go viral after sharing the truth behind her health history.
Caroline Cray, 24, broke her silence about her battle with Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) in a TikTok video from March which has currently obtained more than 2 million views.
According PEOPLECray developed allergies to peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, mustard, kiri, shellfish, and various fruits when he was two years old.
The Massachusetts native was finally diagnosed with MCAS in May 2018 and can now only eat oatmeal and a hypoallergenic formula.
“It’s taken over my life for the last two years, the last seven years,” he said in his first viral video. Cray continues to talk about MCAS on her TikTok @carolinecray2, and other TikTokers have praised the healthcare recruiter for her positive attitude.
Caroline Cray, 24, first became a viral TikTok user in March 2024 after first opening up about her battle with mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) in a video.
Cray was diagnosed with MCAS in 2018 after suffering from multiple food allergies since she was two years old. She can now only eat oatmeal and hypoallergenic formula.
Cray can’t remember what her first hospitalization was like at age two, but she confirmed to PEOPLE that she outgrew most of her allergies over the next five to 10 years.
However, things took a drastic turn when he turned 18 and attended his first week of college in 2017.
He took two bites of an ice cream sandwich he ordered from a truck and almost immediately suffered what he assumed was an anaphylactic reaction.
“I felt like all the blood was coming out of my head and I got tunnel vision,” Cray told PEOPLE earlier this month.
She subsequently suffered multiple allergic reactions and was even admitted to the intensive care unit at Boston Children’s Hospital in September 2017.
Cray’s health continued to decline and she moved out of her college dorm and became a daily commuter.
Doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital eventually diagnosed Cray with MCAS, a disease that repeatedly causes severe allergy symptoms.
‘A few years ago, I could eat basically all foods except the major allergens, such as peanuts, tree nuts, mustard and sesame. But the last few years it’s been very, very difficult,” she said.
He revealed that he had overcome most of his allergies until 2017, after suffering an allergic reaction to an ice cream sandwich.
Cray continued to have reactions and after doctors formally diagnosed him with MCAS, he returned home and began food testing.
Cray went into more detail about the disease in a tiktok video posted on April 29 in response to a comment made by another TikToker.
‘Food is a big trigger for me. For some people, their greatest sensitivity is to chemicals or cleaning products,” she stated.
“But for me, it’s food, and I’ve had a lot of allergic reactions to a lot of foods over the last few years.”
The health recruiter added that the reason she only eats foods with oats and a hypoallergenic formula is because they haven’t caused an allergic reaction.
The healthcare recruiter added that the reason she can only eat oats and a hypoallergenic formula is because they haven’t caused an allergic reaction.
“I’m sure there’s something else I could eat… But the point is, over the last few years, I’ve probably tried a dozen things, and the only ones that have worked have been oatmeal and hypoallergenic formula,” she continued. .
Cray told PEOPLE that his formula tastes like milk or vanilla protein shake and that it contains 57 grams of protein, 91 grams of fat and 100 grams of carbohydrates.
‘The only thing it lacks a little is sodium. So I just complement that. I just add salt to things,’ Cray said.
Cray, now a college graduate and healthcare recruiter, revealed in another TikTok video that oatmeal and hypoallergenic formula are the only two things she can eat without having a reaction.
Cray successfully completed his junior year of college virtually and was able to move into an apartment on his college campus for his senior year.
However, he decided to abandon his ‘food trials’ in order to do so.
“I knew that if I did the food test, I would have to be home a lot and I would have more symptoms,” he explained in his April 29 video.
“I decided to sacrifice eating progress so I could be in school…Honestly, I’m so glad I did because it was a great year.”
Cray is now working with a naturopathic doctor who is helping her reintroduce more foods into her diet.
He also tells TikTokers that while they may not like his diet, it allows him to live.
“With the diet I’ve followed, I was able to finish college, make new friends, make a lot of memories, and I’m very grateful for that,” Cray said.
