1% of the population has histamine intolerance. However, many people don’t realize that’s what is going on.
Often, they express a list of symptoms that manifest as severe health concerns. These symptoms often include:
- Allergies
- Cramps
- Anxiety
- Insomnia
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Headaches
- Acid reflex
- Blood pressure
- Itching
- Congestion
- Rapid heartbeat
- Swelling
Often, patients have ‘tried it all’. Getting pharmaceutical treatments hasn’t worked, and the symptoms continue to persist.
However, there is a reason for everything, including chronic symptoms. To alleviate symptoms, it’s crucial to determine the underlying reasons.
That’s why we’ve assembled a guide to the recent epidemic of histamine intolerance. This epidemic seems to be a result of foods that we’ve never questioned before. Let’s get started!
What Is Histamine?
Histamines are important to the body’s overall health. They aren’t the villains in this story! However, the body sometimes isn’t able to reduce a rise in histamines that occur when we eat histamine-inducing foods.
Histamines serve as a component of stomach acid, which helps break down food. This is crucial to smooth digestion and overall health.
They also serve as an inflammatory response mechanism. When this mechanism is activated, blood vessels are dilated. When this occurs, white blood cells can then neutralize invaders. This helps your body fight off viruses and infections.
Histamines also work as neurotransmitters that send signals from one neuron to another. Clearly, histamines play a critical role in our overall health.
However, sometimes there is too much of a good thing. This is true of histamines as well! When histamine levels are too high, the quality of life drops as symptoms skyrocket.
In a healthy body, there’s a built-in mechanism to prevent histamine build-up. This mechanism is an enzyme abbreviated as DAO, which is short for diamine oxidase.
This enzyme breaks down excessive histamine levels, which prevents symptoms from manifesting. Sometimes, though, the body doesn’t produce as much DAO as is needed. When this happens, symptoms skyrocket.
What Causes DAO Deficiencies?
Gastrointestinal disorders can often cause DAO-enzyme deficiency. These often include:
- Crohn’s
- IBS
- SIBO
- Leaky gut
- Gluten sensitivity
- And more
Bacterial growth can also reduce DAO levels. Reasons can include a lack of probiotics, which can come from taking supplements or eating fermented foods.
Overuse of antibiotics and pharmaceuticals in tap water also causes microbiome dysregulation. Here are some of the drugs that can affect DAO levels:
- Aspirin and NSAIDs
- Enbrel
- Humira
- Antidepressants
- Antihistamine drugs
- Antiarrhythmics
- Some heartburn drugs
All of these can affect DAO, depending on the frequency of use.
Naturally Reducing Histamine Levels
If you are experiencing the symptoms associated with high histamine levels, there are natural remedies for histamines and allergies.
For starters, try taking a DAO supplement. If you take one capsule of DAO—and time it so that you consume it fifteen minutes to one hour before eating a meal—your body can resume normal DAO levels.
When you boost DAO levels, your body naturally starts breaking down excess histamine in your system. Then, your symptoms that are tied to histamine can subside.
This is a great way to test whether histamines are the issue for your body. If they are presenting an issue, you should feel a difference with DAO supplements within three days.
If histamines are the issue, DAO is an easy, safe replacement. It’s a safe supplement, and as long as you keep on a schedule with it, you can expect your histamine symptoms to subside long-term. All you’re doing is supplementing the production of a natural compound that your body is low in.
Changing Your Diet
Some foods will also raise your histamine levels. If you are trying to get a certain issue under control, then a low histamine diet is a big step in the right direction.
Start by cutting artificial food coloring and alcohol from your diet. This will help, but there are other unexpected culprits at play, too.
Learn about the best and worst alcoholic beverages for you in this video.
To fully cleanse your diet, consider cutting high histamine foods, such as:
- Citrus foods
- Berries
- Chocolate
- Fermented foods
- Mushrooms
- Seafood
- Spinach
- Spices
- Tomatoes
- Vinegar
Foods high in histamine will only worsen your symptoms. As discussed above, the goal isn’t to drop your histamine levels to zero. That’s not good for you either! However, the goal is to prevent symptoms from surfacing from excess histamine.
Sometimes, a diet change is necessary in order to achieve that. If you can’t have mushrooms or chocolate in your life, what can you have?
Fortunately, there are some tasty alternatives. You may not be surprised to note that these foods are recommended as part of a healthy diet anyway. If you’re looking to feel better, try prioritizing these foods:
- Fresh fish
- Eggs
- Olive oil
- Pure peanut butter (no sugar or additives)
- Leafy herbs
- Meat and poultry
- Gluten-free rice
- Quinoa
- Fresh vegetables
- Herbal teas
Using this low histamine food list to help guide your grocery shopping can really help.
Taking Quercetin
If you’re looking for something that works a little differently than DAO supplements, Quercetin can help.
If you’re sensitive to pollen, sometimes airborne allergens can provoke histamine release. Quercetin is an all-natural supplement that helps prevent this release of histamine.
Since it’s an all-natural supplement, it will take longer to achieve results than it will if you popped a Claritin. However, it’s extremely safe.
DAO supplements don’t have much effect on airborne allergens. So if you’re suffering from seasonal allergens, quercetin can be a big help.
Histamines In The Body
These days, we’re fortunate to understand what has been causing the chronic symptoms that so many people have been dealing with. By pairing DAO supplements Quercetin, and low-histamine diets, many people are experiencing a higher quality of life. Of course, it’s crucial to check with your doctor if you are being treated for a medical issue before beginning any treatment.
If you’re looking for a partner on your wellness journey, contact us today! We look forward to helping you.
