Hi Sparkler,
I eat Biona organic plain rye bread with no added yeast. It's kept me alive over the past few years!! For me, it's dose related. I get reactions if I eat too much and more especially at this time of year with the grass pollen being high. Dark rye is full of great nutrients so hopefully it's keeping me healthy.
It's interesting that you find Epsom Salts baths helpful. I've been taking magnesium supplements for the past four months which has really improved my condition. Magnesium is an antihistamine and necessary for over 300 enzymes. I was definitely magnesium deficient and feel much better now that I take a daily supplement.
If you google magnesium and histamine there's some interesting information e.g. experiments with rats! On a low mag diet the rats flushed and had high histamine blood levels.
Soy products are high in histamine. They are on the "avoid" list.
Wheat contains yeast which is high in histamine. Organic wholemeal toast was one of the first things I noticed caused me problems. Oh how I miss my toast and morning tea!!!
Best wishes

Hi everyone,
Has anyone had any dental work requiring a local anaesthetic? I have a forthcoming filling and feel nervous about the injection or rather the ingredients in the injection!

Hi All,

A brief catch up and a question...

Organised the Diamine Oxidase status test, through a private doctor who also specialises in nutrition, and also had my Magnesium level tested for good measure. DAO test came back positive, can't remember how much lower than the norm but a fair bit. Magnesium was still below the normal range, but greatly improved since quitting smoking a year ago.

I'm also giving DAOSIN (Histame in the US) another outing. First experiemented with it end 2008. Because of the cost I didn't take it as instructed on the packaging (how stupid was that!). I only took it with lunch and dinner. Results were patchy and not worth the expense. Recently found a couple of packets at the back of a cupboard so decided to take it per the instructions, three times a day. Results are definitely promising; less sneezing after meals..better digestion (less IBS type symptoms)...better mood?? Perhaps. I'm not going to draw too many conclusions at this stage, but will be ordering another month's worth. At least the exchange rate has moved in our favour - every little counts! - as they say.

Just wondering if anyone else has tried Daosin and what experience they have had?

Hi,
Which doctor did you see?

Dr Stewart down at Lewes. He arranged for the blood tests to be performed at Biolab. They only drew the blod for the DAO test then sent it off.

Dear Genny & friends,

My name is Andrea and I live in California. I just found this site and am both relieved and a little bummed out. I'm pretty sure that I have histamine intolerance. I am not sure how to get a blood test for this here in the States, I have never heard of it before and I am not sure if my allergist is the one to ask. Still, I suffer from so many of the symptoms including terrible allergies/allergic rhinitis, headaches, unexplained rashes and itching, diarrhea, abdominal pain, anxiety and panic attacks. I have been diagnosed with several auto-immune conditions including Hashimoto's, Raynaud's, Interstitial Cystitis/Vulvadynia and Esophagitis. All of these are inflammatory conditions. The chairman of the OB/GYN department at the best hospital in my city told me that my IC/Vulvadynia is caused by overproduction of histamines and that most people with these conditions suffer concurrently with environmental allergies. I am extremely allergic to dust mites, mold, pollen and grasses. The cure for the symptoms of IC/V is to take an antihistamine. I didn't believe them until I was flaring so badly I cried, and finally I broke down and took some benadryl and within an hour my flare was almost gone. I have had a lot of problems with various medications though, so am in general leary of medicine.

It makes sense to me that if my IC/V condition is caused by too many histamines, the foods that I eat may be affecting my health in ways that I did not expect. For example, I have noticed that when I eat almonds my IC flares but if I avoid all nuts, I feel pretty good most of the time. I am amazed to find that foods that I eat the most of, such as fish and avocados, may actually be at the root of my problems. I have always felt very ill after eating shellfish, soy, walnuts, tomatoes, red wine and strawberries... even chicken, but I had no idea that there was an actual diagnosis for this. I did have a RAST test done last year and the allergist basically said that everything must be in my head because I had no "true food allergies" to any of the foods that I told him make me very ill. They also tested my blood level of histamine when looking into a suspected penicillin allergy and it was very high.

Would you mind letting me know what kind of doctor diagnosed you with Histamine Intolerance, and what kinds of tests they can use? I don't know how to go about this but I would like to do it... I am convinced that this is at the root of all of my problems. I am not sorry at all about needing to go on an avoidance diet, if it can clear up the inflammation in my body and my recent ill health, it would be so worth it!

Thank you so much for any information you can give to me. I wish I lived in the UK, seems like getting diagnosed there is much easier.

Warmly,
Andrea

Hi Andrea,
So sorry to hear of all your health problems. Histamine Intolerance is a very unpleasant condition to say the least.
I know how you feel, floundering in the dark when you haven't had a diagnosis. I was told I was anxious in the early days of trying to find out why I seemed to be allergic to everything! Now of course I know that HIT makes you feel anxious and who wouldn't be when all these dreadful symptoms are literally taking over your life!

I had a "Histamine plasma level test with an ELISA and DAO serum activity with the help of radio extraction assays using [3H]-labelled putrescine-dihydrochloride as a substrate" by Dirk Budka, Histamine Specialist, in London. I don't know if that's any help.

When I first realised I had HIT, I contacted Dr Janice Vickerstaff Joneja (Canadian, Vancouver) who wrote "Dealing with Food Allergies" (Bull Publishing Company) She was very helpful and e-mailed me some advice. You could try her at Vickerstaff Health Services www.allergynutrition.com Her book is excellent.

More recently, I've read a lot about magnesium especially in"The Magnesium Miracle" by Dr Carolyn Dean (also Canadian but living in Maui) A brilliant book and eye opening.
Magnesium has helped me with many of my "histamine symptoms". I now know that I was very mag deficient.
I had a telephone consultation with Dr Dean....lovely lady! She also has a website. We're all different but it's worth researching.
If you google magnesium there's loads of research and it's astounding.

Good luck
Best wishes
Hilary

Andrea, I forgot to mention that I am also Salicylate intolerant. I have a problem with Almonds which are high in salicylates but not histamine.
Also have you tried the Histame website for help in diagnosis.

Thank you so much, Hilary. It is good to hear from someone who understands what I have been going through. I really appreciate your advice and the information about Drs. Budka and Vickerstaff-Joneja. I suppose if I can't find a doctor here that is willing to help me get the blood testing done, I could always save up to go to Vancouver or London. I am at the point now where I simply need a diagnosis. I happen to be married to a very analytical fellow who comes from a long lineage of MDs. If I can get a blood test revealing a true intolerance, his whole family will support me in the challenging diet. Unfortunately it isn't so easy to get their support by just saying, "I think I am xyz-intolerant". A naturopath had me gluten free for the past several years, thinking that I might have celiac or gluten sensitivity - and his family had a really hard time with the dietary changes. Going over to my in-laws for meals, which we do about once a week, was tough. I know that if I am going to have their solid support behind me, I will need an actual blood test to bear out my symptoms and suspicions.

I am really excited though, to think there may be hope at the end of this long tunnel I've been traveling through. My symptoms and reactions seemed so disparate and unpredictable before, which felt scary. Now that I look at the lists of foods and medications to avoid, it all makes sense and there does seem to be a connection between everything I've gone through. I feel much more peaceful. My worst symptom in the last six months has been unexplained weight loss, and I was thrilled last night to discover on PubMed a study done of a woman with histamine intolerance who presented with all of my symptoms including weight loss over the course of several years. When she went on a histamine intolerance diet, she gained the weight back and her other symptoms were markedly improved. I hope this will happen for me too. I have had 3 CT scans, a cystoscopy, an ultrasound of my heart and an MRI in the last 6 months, none of which revealed anything except a spinal herniation. My bloodwork (CBC) has all been normal. No doctor has been able to explain the weight loss and they say it must be stress or depression. The HI makes so much sense!


Thank you again so much for your time and help. I hope to find a practitioner who can give me the assay here soon so I can move forward and begin to really live again Take care and best wishes - I'll keep you posted.

Andrea

Hi again Andrea,
I also had weight loss along with incredible hunger. I would eat and eat but still lose weight and feel hungry as soon as I'd finished eating!! Happily I have regained the pounds I'd lost after 2 years. I still feel hungry but not as much as before.
I also had small intestinal bacterial overgrowth which was adding to my histamine levels and causing malabsorption. I was given a hydrogen breath test which confirmed the SIBO. I'll try and find the case you mentioned on Pub med.
I understand how scared you feel with the reactions. They are definitely unpredictable and it's sometimes difficult to ascertain what caused them when you're trying to be careful with your diet.
Like you I'm allergic to mould and yeast. In the autumn my symptoms would worsen with the mould spores and in the sring/summer pollen would set them off! The pollen allergy has been better this year since taking magnesium.
Enzymes have helped me too. I read "Enzymes:Go with your Gut" by Karen DeFelice (American) which explained wonderfully how an injured gut could cause food intolerance (injured by the bacteria). She does say that dairy may provoke histamine release but I drink milk for the calories!
Amylase is an antihistamine.
Dr Ellen Cutler developed "Bioset" enzymes which are the only ones I tolerate. She is in California I believe and well worth investigating at www.bioset.com
I went to Glasgow to the only Bioset Practitioner in the UK but could only afford one trip sadly as the doctor was excellent.
Hope was the only thing that kept me going and I still remain determined that I will beat this!
Do investigate Magnesium, Magnesium is needed to reduce histamine levels. I read "Magnesium deficiency has been shown to increase degranulation of mast cells and to increase histamine blood and urinary levels" and "Mag deficiency has been implicated in allergies and allergic skin reactions"
Best wishes,
Hilary

Hilary,

Thank you so much! Wow, it is an incredible relief to hear that you also suffered from weight loss. I am amazed that this one condition explains every single "strange" thing that has happened to me over the past few years. I emailed both Dr. Joneja and also Dr. Budka's clinic yesterday. Dr. Budka's clinic responded that I should come to London, which I would love to do - but am not sure how I would figure it out fiscally. You mentioned that he diagnosed you... Would you mind giving me your impression of the doctor? I'm looking for something that is authentically medical, not another naturopath who will have me hold vials in my hands and tell me that my energy reads a leaky gut. 6000 miles is a long way to travel for help, so I would appreciate your honest feedback. If you'd rather not give it on a forum, I am happy to provide you with a private email address.

I will definitely look into all the things you have mentioned (books, etc.) and begin taking magnesium supplements at night again as I used to in the past.

I cannot begin to explain how clear my head has been in the last two days since I stopped eating histamine rich foods. Even though my small children woke me up 4 times last night, I feel calm and positive, and as though my brain has lifted out of a deep fog. I am so excited, and really optimistic. I feel like maybe the nightmare is finally ending, and I can breathe without the constant flow of postnasal drip down my throat. It is a great relief.

Thank you so much for your time and help.
Warmly,
Andrea