What causes histamine intolerance?

Initially it was thought that a person lacked Diamine oxidase (DAO), which is the main enzyme for the metabolism of ingested histamine. DAO helps break down histamine in a person's body, however if you lack this enzyme or are low in it the body is overwhelmed and it can become histamine toxic wreaking havoc on the body. Histamine is very important in the body it controls brain function, our hormones, even our bladder. Too much histamine, however is supa doopa baaaad. As well we suffering with histamine intolerance can vouch for!

Could this lack of DAO be genetic? Quite possibly. I have found some research that indicates it could be. However let's look at the people that are simply "low" in DAO. Why? Well there are DAO inhibitors such as caffeine (good bye coffee it was nice to know ya) and then there's alcohol and sodium benzoate which can be food grade or chemical (check your face creams etc.).

Here's a little Dani fun fact for you: Children's liquid benadryl contains sodium benzoate!! YEP! THAT my friend just happened! I mean what in the hell? Really? Benadryl is going to put a chemical in their antihistamine that is not only a histamine liberator BUT a DAO inhibitor? S.T.U.P.I.D.

Now, if you want to get all scientific with the chemicals and their names that are DAO inhibitors go here.

So the jury, (that jury being me), is still out whether it is just the lack of or degradation of DAO in the body that causes histamine intolerance. I only say this because the next few paragraphs you will be reading. I believe that no person, even with adequate DAO could fight off an attack of extreme histamine toxicity.

You see, histamine intolerance is just a secondary reaction to a more critical issue going on in your body which is called leaky gut. Whaaaaat? Ewww! What's up with "leaky gut". Okay, it's not like our guts are oozing actual green ooze like from the Ninja Turtle movies! Naw, it's actually leaking wonderfully fermented undigested, rotten protein! Yum!

Leaky gut can be caused by a myriad of things from Celiac disease to Candida Albican overgrowth. Anyway you look at it though, it's the inflammation of the gut lining that eventually leads to permeation of the intestines (holes) and in extreme cases that have gone on for awhile quite LARGE holes where pieces/chunks of actual food flow out of the intestines and travel into the bloodstream. Food is NOT supposed to be making it's way into our bloodstream so our bodies say "hey, WTF" and it starts attacking the food by releasing histamine from our mast cells. Essentially it's the body attacking its own self (autoimmune). So this my friends are where all of our symptoms begin. Eczema, rashes, endometriosis, migraines, headaches, insomnia, nausea, constipation and the list goes on.

Pissed off at your body yet? Well if it was celiac initially that caused your leaky gut then obviously it's not your fault. However if Candida is your problem that started your leaky gut then in most cases, aside from chemo or abusing antibiotics, it is your problem. Too much sugar in the body, basically eating like crap causes the Candida issue. In some studies they suggest that even pregnancy can cause Candida Albican overgrowth, so that one we can blame on hubby! DOH!

Is your head spinning yet? Mine was and still does albeit from the excess histamine of course! Yes, I blame my ditziness (is that even a word?) on my histamine issues. So here's the deal it really does matter how you got the histamine intolerance so you can treat it properly. If it's from celiac get on GLUTEN free NOW, if you were previously diagnosed you should know better. Now, if you had it as a child and went into remission as an adolescent, which can happen then the damage was already done, it was only a matter of time. After all, inflammation is a real bitch and only leads to more inflammation and diet is a MAJOR component in whether we are treating inflammation or feeding inflammation.

Are there ways to help repair a leaky gut? Yes. Are there ways to treat a candida overgrowth? Yes. Are there ways to treat histamine intolerance? Yes. Don't get down on yourself yet. There are ways to help and to ultimately cure yourself. Unfortunately it's a long process. Yea, I know you didn't want to hear that. However, it was a looooong process to get sick in the first place so there won't be an easy fix. I'm still healing myself still even now. Along the way you will have set backs for reasons you know and then sometimes for reasons you have NO IDEA.

In my next post I will be sharing what supplements you can begin taking immediately to help break down that nasty fermenting undigested protein in your gut and continue to break down any further protein you ingest. I will also be adding a post tomorrow regarding what you can start doing to eradicate those nasty yeastie beasties running around in your intestines and blood stream that caused your leaky gut to begin with (if this in fact, is your case). It's going to be a real head scratcher though I must warn you because eerily Candida has the identical symptoms as a histamine intolerance. So do you just have Candida and leaky gut? Or, do you have histamine intolerance and leaky gut? Or WTF do you have ALL 3????? Come back tomorrow for another fun filled post(s) regarding all of that craziness!  This can really drive you to drink! Wait, can't do that it's a DAO inhibitor. Stay tuned for a future post regarding what you CAN drink that's alcoholic and not swell to oblivion. (and all the drunks say...didda di di di, didda di di di.)