Histamine Intolerance: Symptoms and Treatment

The symptoms of histamine intolerance usually appear suddenly after eating or drinking. In this article, we explain what symptoms these can be and how the intolerance is treated.

These symptoms can occur with histamine intolerance

Histamine is an endogenous messenger substance that is involved in many processes in the body, such as inflammatory reactions. In certain events, histamine is suddenly released and can trigger allergies like hay fever. Some people react to histamine supplied with food. This is intolerance, also called pseudoallergy in the case of histamine.

• The symptoms appear after eating foods containing histamine. Most of the time, these are products that are the result of fermentation processes or have been in storage for a long time. This includes mature cheese, wine, or beer. But also smoked or cured sausage, certain types of vegetables such as sauerkraut or soy sauce contain a lot of histamines.
• Some foods also cause an increased release of histamine in the body. This is the case with chocolate or strawberries, for example.
• Histamine intolerance can manifest itself in many ways. Itching and reddening of the skin usually occur in attacks and wheals can form. Many patients experience headaches and, as a result, nausea, vomiting, and dizziness. Fatigue can also occur.
• Since histamine affects many parts of the body, the gastrointestinal tract can also be affected. You may experience abdominal pain or cramps, sudden diarrhea, and gas.
• Other symptoms include a swollen or runny nose. Menstrual disorders and menstrual pain are possible in women. In rare cases, it can lead to a drop in blood pressure and an increased heart rate.

Treatment of histamine intolerance

There are two approaches to therapy. First and foremost, a change in diet is initiated. As a supplement is treated with drugs.

• If you have histamine intolerance, the first step is to avoid foods that contain histamine. The change in diet usually happens in several phases. In the beginning, you should avoid the supply of histamine as much as possible. This lowers the histamine level in the blood. This process is supported by rice and potatoes on the menu.
• After the elimination diet, which lasts about two weeks, you can put individual products back on the menu. It is important to check exactly which foods you can tolerate. The whole thing has to happen gradually and takes about four to six weeks. The doctor and possibly a nutritionist can help with this.
• In the third step, you have to observe over the long term which products you can consume and in what amounts without causing any symptoms. It is advisable to keep a food diary.
• Complete freedom from symptoms cannot always be achieved by changing your diet alone. Because the occurrence of symptoms depends on the total amount of histamine in the body. In addition to the amount ingested with food, the amount released by the body itself also plays a role.
• The doctor will also prescribe medication to get the situation under control. These are mostly so-called antihistamines, which are supposed to lower the histamine level.
• Many patients with histamine intolerance also have vitamin B6 and C deficiencies. Vitamin B6 helps break down histamine, vitamin C accelerates the process. In this case, it is advisable to take appropriate dietary supplements.
• The doctor may prescribe the histamine-degrading enzyme diamine oxidase. It is taken in capsule form just before a meal and is intended to prevent the onset of symptoms after a histamine-rich meal.
• If you experience digestive problems after eating, this can also be due to lactose intolerance. You can read about which foods can be responsible for this in our next article.