A Wawa customer says she finally figured out why their coffee keeps upsetting her stomach—and it’s not what you might expect.
TikTok user @drapedinbeautystudio, a Delaware-based hair and makeup artist, said she typically opts for Wawa coffee with non-dairy creamer to avoid stomach pain. But despite her best efforts, she kept feeling sick after drinking it.
“I always be trying to figure out why my stomach [is] hurting and why I always have to use the bathroom after I drink Wawa coffee,” she says in a now-viral video.
Then she discovered the culprit—the “non-dairy” hazelnut creamer itself. After flipping over the bottle to scan the ingredients, she noticed something suspicious: milk was listed.
“This is crazy,” she says. “That’s really crazy.”
As of Tuesday, her video had racked up more than 29,000 views, with commenters chiming in to share similar experiences or express shock at the misleading labeling.
What’s going on at Wawa?
Technically, Wawa—and other brands—aren’t breaking any rules. Under U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidelines, a product labeled “non-dairy” can still contain milk-derived ingredients like casein or sodium caseinate. The term specifically refers to products that don’t contain cream, butter, or milk fat, but milk proteins are still fair game.
Those proteins, especially casein, are often added to mimic the texture and appearance of traditional dairy creamers.
So if, like @drapedinbeautystudio, you spot “milk” or “sodium caseinate” listed on a non-dairy creamer, you’re not seeing things. It may not have cream or lactose, but it can still contain ingredients derived from milk.
And that’s where it gets tricky. A product that contains sodium caseinate can’t be considered truly “dairy-free”—a term that implies the complete absence of any dairy ingredients. For people with milk allergies or dairy sensitivities, that’s a crucial distinction.
This labeling confusion has been around for decades, dating back to the early days of non-dairy creamers. Those products were originally marketed to people with lactose intolerance, not necessarily to those avoiding dairy entirely.
The bottom line is that, as frustrating as it may be, “non-dairy” doesn’t always mean dairy-free. If you’re avoiding milk for health or dietary reasons, always check the ingredients label, especially for hidden milk proteins.
In @drapedinbeautystudio’s case, she’s not letting Wawa off the hook.
“This is ridiculous,” she wrote in the caption of her video. “I have been trying to figure out what in the world is wrong with my stomach! Here is the problem!”
@drapedinbeautystudio Tag @Wawa this is ridiculous! I have been trying to figure out what in the world is wrong with my stomach ! Here is the problem!So many people are dairy intolerant! This false advertisement has cause me so much discomfort and I can’t imagine how many others have been going through this as well!! Yall need to get on this now !!! #wawa #falseadvertising #creamercontainsdairy #foryoupage ♬ original sound – The Healthy Hair Enchancer
Confused by ‘non-dairy’? You’re not alone
Commenters on @drapedinbeautystudio’s video were quick to weigh in, many clarifying the confusing difference between “non-dairy” and “dairy-free.”
“Non-dairy creamers sometimes say ‘contains milk’ (or ‘contains a milk derivative’) on the label because they often include milk-derived ingredients, even though they don’t contain liquid milk,” one viewer explained.
“Non-dairy isn’t the same as dairy-free,” another added. “There’s casein in it. It’s non-dairy since it’s not milk-based, like half and half is, for example.”
Others, however, voiced frustration with what they called overly technical FDA language that only adds to the confusion.
“This drives me NUTS,” one commenter wrote. “So many bubble tea places say they use non-dairy milk, and they use Lactaid. So evil.”
Still, not everyone pinned the blame solely on the creamer. Some speculated that @drapedinbeautystudio’s stomach troubles could stem from other ingredients.
“Trust me, it’s the oil in the creamer giving you the runs [sic] not the minute traces of dairy from the factory machine,” one person suggested.
“At the end of the day, you need powdered creamer,” another wrote. “That’s the only way you’re gonna get no dairy.”
And then there were the coffee skeptics. “Coffee is the laxative,” someone else commented flatly.
The Daily Dot has reached out to @drapedinbeautystudio via TikTok comment and to Wawa through its online contact form.
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