What can someone do to food to keep others from eating it?

Question

Just learned that some people at work have been taking lunch or food that doesn't belong to them. It hasn't happened to me but hearing that even if container is clearly marked, others will just take it and eat all the food.
Does anyone know of something that when added to food makes someone sick (stomach pains & Diarhhea sick - not really sick or death)
Thinking I might need to do the Ex-Lax brownies but would prefer to add something to already half eaten food and teach someone a lesson if they decide to swipe it.

Just as an aside.
If I was to do something to my own food (which is what I am suggesting) can I get in trouble for that? If I throw talculm powder or something else on top of my half eaten Chinese food and some idiot grabs it, eats it, and gets sick because of it, do I need to worry about it?

Some suggestions are good but others are missing the point. If I bring my lunch from home at 8 AM, someone might grab it out of common fridge and eat it before I take lunch at 12 PM.
I would like to just avoid the whole situation but I am not going to change what I eat or how I label things becasue some thief might take my food. Would rather teach him a painful lesson he won't forget.

Answer 1

I agree with the jalepeno trick. Or chili seasoning in there. As far as people having a reaction to something....if that person or persons had allergies to anything, they wouldn't take just anyone's food. Trust me...this is coming from a person who has terrible food sensitivies and chemical sensitivities. I wouldn't touch someone's food if I were starving for 10 years. It's not worth the reaction. So, with that being said, I would give them something to remember. Nothing irritates me more than inconsideration.

Answer 2

I'd bring something and just dump a whole bunch of salt into it! Or like on that commercial, where the kids are getting a big slice of beautiful birthday cake and they take a huge mouthful and spit it out because the person mistook the salt for the sugar!!! Brownies with salt? Chinese take out with loads of salt mixed into it?

Maybe that'd make the person or people think twice. I wouldn't suggest putting something in there like visine or ex lax that really is mean. But, spicing it up with something else - well that's not so mean. I just don't think salt will be detectable by nose as would be the case with the chili or jalapeno.

Answer 3

Please I have to say one thing, don't ever put something in food or liquid. It sounds like you are trying to play life&death situation here. What if the stuff you put in it had an adverse reaction and sent them to their merry way to the funeral parlor? ANd just because of a lousy sandwich, or pickle?

Food is Sacred and a blessing.

"When there is food on the table, all are welcome."
This goes for humans and animals.

If you throw food outside, did you notice birds, cats, rats, and raccoons come. All are welcome, so if you don't want it, don't leave the food there. Eat out, or at home.

*****Why don't you bring a THERMOS OR COOLER OR THOSE THINGS THAT YOU CARRY LUNCH WITH. This is sound advice, BUT DON'T TAMPER WITH FOOD.
If you are passionate about doing so, I strongly suggest you ask a forensic expert before you do the diabolical.

NOTE: If you really want to pull this off, leave a rotten or blackened banana with mold in a plastic bag with your good lunch. The very person that opens this up will have heaves if they see that, and make sure your name is on it.

Answer 4

I don't understand why some people do this. Personally, I think it's gross to take food that belongs to someone else. For one thing, I don't really know what's in it or if it has been previously left out for a long period of time. As for keeping your food safe, I'm not too sure I would go to the extreme of tampering with it so that it makes whoever takes it sick. Instead, I would do something to it to gross out someone so that person doesn't take it. You could add things to the food to make it look disgusting or smell bad. That repels most people.

Answer 5

If you decide to do the ex-lax in the brownies trick, make sure that no one can trace the food back to you! I actually heard about a guy who was having this same problem and used the ex-lax solution. He was fired over it. (You'd think they'd fire the guy who got caught swiping food that wasn't his. Some workplaces are crazy.)

Answer 6

Place a note on the container that says "I spit on my food every other day. It's up to you to decide whether today was an 'on' or 'off' day. Good luck."

ROFLOL

A friend (an RN) had a similar problem years ago. Someone was stealing food from the nurses' lounge fridge. My friend decided it was time to take some action so she wrote a note and taped it to the door:
"'THOU SHALT NOT STEAL' - It's as good now as it was 4000 years ago."

The stealing stopped ;)

Answer 7

put the lax, halopino juice and flakes, alum powder, and the saline eye drops
they will never try and steal some1s lunch agin and get off their lazy but and make a samwich themself

ps all 3 together not sepretly itl b hilaruos

srry bad speller

Answer 8

Crushed fresh jalapeño juice and lots of it. You could also use alum powder. Both of these are harmless.

Only do this to your own food. You have a reasonable right to expect your property not to be interfered with. If anyone asks you are training for a chili eating competition for the former, or you have a mouth ulcer for the latter.

Answer 9

Adding laxatives to the food is illegal! A woman in my town was arrested last year for doing this to her boss. I'm sure you don't want to go to jail so may I suggest putting a ridiculous amount of salt or maybe even hot sauce into the food. My mother has done this to coworkers who ate her food and believe me they got the point!

Answer 10

I've heard that Visine makes people sick and it's nearly undetectable.

Also, once we had the same issue at our office with a guy who used to stop by and steal food, so we slipped some really HOT spice in there. Oddly, he didn't seem to notice.