20 Bizarre Real-Life Phobias

16. Lipophobia

There aren’t too many people who are fond of being fat, but if you suffer from lipophobia you actually have an irrational fear of becoming fat. The thought of fat accumulating in the body drives people with lipophobia into a state of unbelievable fear, which can lead them to have very restrictive, and often destructive, diets and eating habits to avoid fats in foods. This is not a common fear, and documented cases of lipophobia have only begun in the last four decades.

17. Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia

Ironically and somewhat cruelly, hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia is the irrational fear of long words. The word itself comes in at over 30 letters, making it the very thing that sufferers fear most. People who suffer from hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia will find themselves exhibiting an extreme fear response when they see or need to say long words. As a result they will do all they can to avoid them.

Clare Whitfield Chief Editor

Clare Whitfield is the Editor of Stay at Home Mum and a recognised voice in practical home management for Australian families. Based in the northern suburbs of Sydney, she balances editorial leadership with life as a stay at home mum to two school age children. Her background in home economics and more than a decade of experience in recipe development, family budgeting, and household systems inform her work.

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