Holistic Health: Mindset, Body & Energy

I’ve always tended to have higher histamine, moreover presenting with nasal symptoms eg. Nasal congestion, runny nose, even watery eyes etc. As a child, I was always on things like Rhinocort & Demazin – so not ideal!

It was a few years into working as a herbalist & nutritionist, that I really understood it more clearly. I wasn’t taught it, no Dr or ENT specialist ever mentioned histamine load or the fact certain foods are high in histamine, certain foods unleash more histamine in the body, and other foods and drinks can block the enzymes that break down histamine more efficiently. But having suffered from it myself, and seeing others with these hayfever and allergy like symptoms, pushed me into doing alot more research.

Higher histamine can be associated with undermethylation eg. Having MTHFR gene mutation (I’m compound hetero ie one of each of commonly tested SNPs). Some of us don’t have enough of the enzymes to degrade histamine.

Also interestingly estrogen increases histamine and can block the DAO enzyme and histamine can stimulate the ovaries to produce more estrogen. As estrogen levels drop, the body can produce more inflammation and more histamine. Progesterone may inhibit histamine, hence histamine related symptoms can be more of an issue at certain times in your cycle, or certain life stages eg. Pregnancy, perimenopause, menopause.

Histamine is a chemical found naturally in all cells in the body by the way.

However, recently, I had hives for the first time in my life, likely due to inadvertently, or unintentionally eating alot of high histamine foods eg. Kombucha (on hot days), avocado, baby spinach, banana, cinnamon, peanut butter, cheese, nuts, even some tinned tuna and lions mane supplements. If I do bone broth regularly, my nose runs like a tap after a few days.

Also things like green tea, which I have 1 each morning, along with black tea, which I have 1 some afternoons, can block the DAO enzyme that breaks down histamine.

So here I am, eating lots of basil and other green herbs, artichokes and having another vitamin C tablet all having known antihistamine properties. I also have taken 2 x zyrtec in the past 4 days as the rash & itching was intense.  

So, don’t overdo any foods. If you tend to higher histamine symptoms, watch your histamine food intake (google high histamine and low histamine foods). Also always look at the gut- things makes everything worse when the gut lining is impermeable & leaky and manage stress, which exacerbates everything!