Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSymptomsCausesDiagnosisTreatment
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Symptoms
Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment
Histamineintolerance occurs when the body can’t process high levels of histamine, a chemical that causes runny nose, headaches, congestion, and other symptoms. While histamine is best known as the chemical the immune system produces in response to an allergic or inflammatory reaction, it also communicates important information to the brain and plays a role indigestion.
Histamine can be found in certain foods and somefoodsrelease histamine stored in the body. Diet alone can cause histamine levels to rise so high that someone with histamine intolerance experiences allergy-like symptoms without having an allergic reaction.
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Histamine Intolerance Symptoms
The most common signs of histamine intolerance include:
A histamine intolerance intolerance may look like:
The severity of symptoms can vary from person to person.
Because levels of histamine can build up in the body, people who have allergies in addition to a histamine intolerance can experience more serious allergic reactions. These can includeasthma attacksor evenanaphylactic shock—a dangerous, rapid reaction that causes breathing issues and a life-threatening drop in blood pressure.
Elevated levels of histamine can also cause the heart to beat erratically and may be associated with serious chronic conditions likeCrohn’s disease.
What Causes High Histamine Levels?
Your body makes two enzymes in order to process histamine:diamine oxidase(DAO), which comes from thedigestive tract, andhistamine-N-methyltransferase(HNMT), which comes from thecentral nervous system.
Without enough of the right enzymes, most commonly DAO, to clear histamine from the body and maintain healthy levels, it can build up and cause symptoms that can mimic allergies.
Various circumstances can impact these enzymes and cause histamine intolerance symptoms:
Research has shown that a small portion of people—about 1% to 3%—have a histamine intolerance.
Allergy vs. IntoleranceAn intolerance—whether to a food or a chemical—is different from a true allergy. An intolerance usually occurs when your body lacks certain enzymes needed to digest or process a substance. An allergic reaction occurs when your body’s immune system identifies and attacks an allergen.
Allergy vs. Intolerance
An intolerance—whether to a food or a chemical—is different from a true allergy. An intolerance usually occurs when your body lacks certain enzymes needed to digest or process a substance. An allergic reaction occurs when your body’s immune system identifies and attacks an allergen.
Diagnosing a histamine intolerance can be challenging. Like other chemicals in your body, levels of histamine shift based on the speed at which your body processes it.
Eating a high-histamine food(or more than one at the same time) may be enough to cause symptoms one day, but may not be enough to do so on a different day.
Testing is needed to help form a diagnosis—a process that includes, and may even start with, taking steps to rule out other possibilities.
Review of Symptom History
If you repeatedly experience symptoms after eating foods that are high in histamine, it may be helpful to keep a food log and review it with your healthcare professional.
A record of the foods you eat and any symptoms you develop can help you and your medical professional track the pattern of symptoms and determine whether specific foods may be to blame.
Tests to Rule Out Other Conditions
Coming to a histamine intolerance diagnosis is often a process of elimination.
Traditional allergy testsare not effective for diagnosing histamine intolerance, however, your healthcare provider may use these tests to make sure specific allergens aren’t causing your symptoms. These include skin tests that measure reactions when small amounts of allergens are injected or applied to small breaks (or pricks) in the skin.
Furthermore, studies have shown that histamine may play a role ininflammatory bowel disease (IBD)andirritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
If you are experiencing gastrointestinal symptoms, such as diarrhea, your healthcare provider may run additional tests to rule these two conditions out.
These tests could include:
DAO Testing
A blood test to check your DAO levels may be useful, as it can determine whether they are too low.
Histamine Challenge
If a histamine intolerance is suspected, your healthcare provider may recommend a test called a histamine challenge.
For this test, you are given food that contains histamine to determine the threshold dose of histamine capable of triggering symptoms. This test demands the supervision of specialists and is only offered in a few medical settings due to its complexity and potential serious side effects.
Histamine Intolerance Treatment
Like an allergy, the best way to naturally treat an intolerance is to avoid the substance—in this case, histamine. A histamine-free diet may be enough to make your symptoms go away.
While a histamine-free diet is the only true long-term treatment for histamine intolerance, there are a couple of other options that can help you manage symptoms. These may be particularly useful for those whose symptoms are frequent and severe.
How to Stop Histamine Naturally
Avoiding histamine-rich foods, or foods that trigger your body to release histamine, is an important first step. Maintaining a strictlow-histamine or histamine-free dietis the key to relief from histamine intolerance symptoms.
Research suggests that pediatric patients who tried a low-histamine diet over a four-week period saw an average of 88% to 100% reduction in their symptoms.
Your healthcare provider may also recommend certain supplements.
Diet:Your healthcare provider will discuss which foods you should avoid. In general, fermented, aged, or processed foods have higher levels of histamine and are more likely to cause problems. Other foods, such as citrus fruits, can trigger your body to release stored histamine.
Alcoholic beverages can be problematic for people who have histamine intolerance because alcohol can make DAO less effective.Therefore, giving up alcohol is part of a histamine-free diet strategy.
High-Histamine FoodsAged cheeses (like Parmesan)AvocadoBeerProcessed meats (e.g., cold cuts, hot dogs)SauerkrautSpinachWine (especially red)Foods That Release Stored HistamineChocolateCitrus fruitsNutsPineappleShellfishStrawberriesTomatoes
High-Histamine FoodsAged cheeses (like Parmesan)AvocadoBeerProcessed meats (e.g., cold cuts, hot dogs)SauerkrautSpinachWine (especially red)
Aged cheeses (like Parmesan)
Avocado
Beer
Processed meats (e.g., cold cuts, hot dogs)
Sauerkraut
Spinach
Wine (especially red)
Foods That Release Stored HistamineChocolateCitrus fruitsNutsPineappleShellfishStrawberriesTomatoes
Chocolate
Citrus fruits
Nuts
Pineapple
Shellfish
Strawberries
Tomatoes
Supplements:In addition to a modified diet, your healthcare provider may recommend using certain types of supplements, such as a DAO supplement, to help naturally reduce or eliminate your symptoms.
They may also suggest a strong,natural antihistaminelikevitamin C, as well as copper, or vitamin B6. These all naturally stimulate the activity of histamine-processing enzymes in the body.
Talk to your healthcare provider if you’re interested in trying these supplements to see whether they could improve your symptoms.
Sleep:There is a belief that getting enough sleep can help maintain regular histamine levels, but there isn’t a lot of research-backed evidence to support this.
That said, research does point to a connection between histamine and the regulation of the wake cycle, but more is needed to confidently define the full relationship between sleep and histamine levels.
Hydration:Some research suggests that dehydration may stimulate histamine production within the body. Staying hydrated, then, may help the body better regulate and reduce histamine responses.
Medications
Antihistamine medicines, such as Benadryl (diphenhydramine), may be useful if you accidentally eat a food that contains histamine. These medications block histamine activity and can reduce symptoms.
Talk to your healthcare provider about which antihistamine is best for you.
Changes to Current Medications:Talk to your healthcare provider about any medications, prescription or non-prescription, you’re already taking. Some medications can affect the action of your histamine-processing enzymes.
If you are taking such a medication, your healthcare provider may adjust your dosage, switch you to a similar medication that doesn’t affect histamine, or take you off the medicine entirely if it’s safe to do so.
Summary
If you frequently experience allergy symptoms after consuming high-histamine food and drink likebeeror wine, sauerkraut, or even certain cheeses, you may have an intolerance to histamine instead of a food allergy.
The best way to naturally treat a histamine intolerance is avoidance. By not eating foods that contain histamine or prompt your body to release it, you can take control of your symptoms. Talk with your healthcare provider about whether you should also consider an antihistamine medication or an enzyme-boosting supplement.
11 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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