Histamine Intolerance – Recognizing the Symptoms and Causes
Do you often experience skin rashes, headaches, or nausea after certain foods or drinks? Maybe you’ve noticed frequent hay fever or diarrhoea that you can’t explain. If this sounds familiar, you may be dealing with histamine intolerance.
For example, Joanna faced constant red blotches on her skin, along with headaches, hay fever, and stomach cramps. Despite being in her twenties, these symptoms were embarrassing and frustrating. Does this resonate with you or someone you know?
What is Histamine Intolerance?
Histamine intolerance occurs when the body has trouble breaking down histamines, leading to a build-up. This is similar to a clogged sink, where histamines accumulate faster than they can be processed. As a result, you may experience symptoms like skin rashes, headaches, and digestive issues. My goal is to help clear this blockage and restore your balance.
What are Histamines?
Histamines are natural amino acids found in certain foods like aged cheese, smoked fish, and citrus fruits. While histamine is also produced in the body to support immune functions, fermented or preserved foods can trigger an intolerance. For example, red wine and aged cheese can cause hay fever-like symptoms because of the histamine they contain.
Common Symptoms of Histamine Intolerance
Histamine intolerance symptoms often resemble allergic reactions. These include:
- Skin rashes
- Hay fever-like symptoms
- Nausea
- Diarrhoea
- Headaches
- Fatigue
When Do Symptoms Appear?
Symptoms depend on the histamine load in your body. If you consume large amounts of histamine-rich foods in a short period, symptoms may occur immediately. On the other hand, if you eat smaller amounts over time, symptoms could appear several hours later.
Histamine Intolerance vs. Allergy
Unlike an allergy, which occurs at the mere presence of a substance, an intolerance depends on the amount consumed. Think of it as a bucket—your body can handle a certain amount before symptoms occur. This explains why symptoms can vary from one person to the next.
Healthy Histamine Metabolism
Normally, diamino oxidase (DAO), an enzyme found in your gut, breaks down histamine. However, deficiencies in DAO can lead to histamine build-up. Alcohol, certain medications (like antidepressants), and poor gut health can affect DAO levels, exacerbating histamine intolerance.
How to Manage Histamine Intolerance
To manage histamine intolerance, it’s important to:
- Avoid high-histamine foods
- Address gut dysfunction caused by stress, infection, or dysbiosis
- Support DAO production with vitamins B6, C, zinc, and copper
- Balance your gut microbiome by reducing harmful bacteria
- Consider natural compounds, such as quercetin, which support histamine metabolism
Reintroducing histamine-rich foods should be done gradually, once your gut health and histamine tolerance are restored.
By following these steps, you can improve your quality of life and better tolerate foods that once caused discomfort.
Understanding and knowledge can help you feel empowered to regaining your health, but can feel overwhelming if you didn’t major in biology or biochemistry.
Need help applying all this knowledge to your body in an easy and doable way? I’m here if you need a guiding hand or have any questions. Click here to book online.
I want to share this information with you as well! the Feeling Unwell and Tired all the Time If you know anyone who would benefit from this information, please share it.
Julie xo (Feeling Great Naturopath, Mt Martha)
