Histamine and the DAO Enzyme
There appears to be more and more of us that are diagnosed with
Histamine Intolerance (HIT) or are at least suspected of having temporary histamine
intolerance. HIT is a bit confusing
because it is not a food allergy but mimics a food sensitivity. Histamine occurs naturally in certain foods. Other foods are histamine liberators meaning
they release histamine in the small intestines.
For most people this isn’t a big deal because the enzyme DiAmineOxidase
(DAO) breaks down the histamine, food is digested and life is grand. Unfortunately for those that do not contain
enough DAO to break down the histamine, it spills into the blood and various
symptoms occur which may be different for each person. My particular symptoms manifest as allergic
reactions meaning gastrointestinal issues, difficulty breathing, dizziness,
flushing, itching, etc. Sometimes the
reactions progress to anaphylaxis which really sucks!
To understand the process in layman’s terms, histamine plays
an important role in the system acting as a natural defense against infection
and injury. It is basically a
neurotransmitter sending warning signals around the body to assist in fighting
off the infection or injury by causing inflammation. While this is the role of histamine and is
necessary for healing, in some people it cause an adverse reaction known as
histamine intolerance. If somebody has
HIT, the body does not break it down and it continues to build in the digestive
tract eventually filling up our histamine buckets which then spill over and
cause us to react. It is a vicious cycle
of trying to maintain this level. I
personally try to maintain a low-histamine diet. It is also important to eat as
fresh as possible. As food sits, it
begins to spoil which causes bacteria and histamine begins to form. Another approach is to manage the DAO level in
the intestines by consuming supplements such as Histame or DAOSIN.
There are tests available to test determine if one has low
DAO however I have not heard many positives about the tests. Apparently they may not be conclusive or
definitive. The recommended way of
testing is to conduct the old fashion elimination diet. Remove foods that you know are high in
histamine or histamine liberators and then see how you feel after a few
weeks. You should keep a very detailed
diary journaling everything you eat and then how you feel. After a few weeks, slowly start adding foods
back in to see if there is a change or a reaction. Only one food at a time should be added back
in and only in very small quantities.
Just a bite, not a bowl! There is
also the option of genetic testing.
According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, there is a potential
genetic background of histamine intolerance.
Specifically they state The human DAO gene spans ≈10 kbp and is
located on chromosome 7q35 (27)
Various single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the DAO gene have been shown
to be associated with inflammatory and neoplastic gastrointestinal diseases,
such as food allergy (44),
gluten-sensitive enteropathy, Crohn disease, ulcerative colitis, and colon
adenoma (45-47).
No significant difference in the distribution of the investigated HNMT alleles
could be shown between patients with gastrointestinal diseases and control
subjects (45,
47),
but a functional relevant polymorphism of the HNMT gene (chromosome 2q22) has been described for white
asthma patients (48).
Conversely, this association could not be observed in Japanese (49),
German pediatric (50),
and East Indian (51)
populations. Thus, histamine intolerance seems to be acquired mostly through the
impairment of DAO activity caused by gastrointestinal diseases or through the
inhibition of DAO, but the high interindividual variations in the expression of
DAO in the gut and the association of SNPs in the DAO gene with
gastrointestinal diseases provide evidence for a genetic predisposition in a
subgroup of patients with histamine intolerance (27).
Again, this appears to be a bit inconclusive. In some cases, low
DAO production is temporary and can be brought on by things like small
intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), leaky gut symdrome, and use of certain
medications. Actually some of the
anti-histamines that we take for our allergies cause low DAO production such as
Allegra, Zyrtec, Benadryl, Tagamet, Pepcid and Zantac.
Here is a food list identifying histamine foods and their
levels.
|
Histamine content in mg
per 100 g (resp. per litre)
|
|
|
Cheese
|
|
|
Camembert
|
6,11
|
|
Sheep milk cheese
|
0,4-6,1
|
|
Gouda
|
6,22
|
|
Parmesan
|
1,3-58
|
|
Brie
|
3,5
|
|
Harz cheese
|
39
|
|
Cottage cheese
|
0,1-2,8
|
|
Edam cheese
|
3,5
|
|
Gorgonzola
|
0,2-18
|
|
Mozzarella
|
0
|
|
Cream cheese
|
0,3
|
|
Tilsit cheese
|
0,1-6
|
|
Cheddar
|
4,34
|
|
Gamperdona
|
14,16
|
|
Hard cheese
|
22,76
|
|
Rapesan
|
17,5
|
|
Feta cheese
|
4,01
|
|
Brie cake
|
2,16
|
|
Fish
|
|
|
Tuna fish
|
9,82
|
|
Herring
|
35-300
|
|
Seafood (crabs, mussels,…)
|
0,2-700
|
|
Sardine
|
0
|
|
Trout
|
33,3
|
|
Mackerel
|
16,02
|
|
Sardelle
|
24,22
|
|
Marinades of fish
|
240
|
|
Anchovy
|
4,4-125
|
|
Codfish
|
0,2-7,7
|
|
Meat, gammon
|
|
|
Mincemeat
|
0,8
|
|
Beef
|
0,1-0,9
|
|
Liver of beef
|
6,5
|
|
Pork liver
|
22,5
|
|
Chicken
|
12
|
|
Turkey
|
0,3
|
|
Bratwurst
|
0,6
|
|
Cervelat sausage
|
5,5-9,6
|
|
Liver sausage
|
0,4
|
|
Salami
|
19,03
|
|
Tea sausage spread
|
1,4-4,5
|
|
Meat salad
|
0,9-31
|
|
Landjäger sausage
|
2,88
|
|
Prosciutton Contadino
|
116,12
|
|
Bacon
|
4,21
|
|
Vegetables, fruits
|
|
|
Sourcrout
|
7,67
|
|
Tomato
|
0,73
|
|
Eggplant
|
16,54
|
|
Spinach
|
2,0-38,0
|
|
Chickpeas
|
2,6
|
|
Banana
|
0
|
|
Avocado
|
0,64
|
|
Strawberry
|
0,21
|
|
Cereals, pasta
|
|
|
Rice
|
2,8
|
|
Soya
|
2,4
|
|
Wheat
|
3,5
|
|
Yeast and yeast extract
|
20-1660
|
|
Beverages
|
|
|
Orange juice
|
10,1
|
|
Riesling
|
2,09
|
|
Frauenkäferl 2010
|
2,66
|
|
Sauvignon blanc 2008
|
5,09
|
|
Chardonnay
|
3,42
|
|
Champagner Brut Classic
|
3,41
|
|
Asti
|
3,21
|
|
Blanc de blanc
|
4,45
|
|
Blauer Zweigelt 2011
|
6,87
|
|
Blaufränkischer 2011
|
12,26
|
|
Legends 2010
|
7,55
|
|
Cuvee 2004
|
8,42
|
|
Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah 2007
|
11,04
|
|
Shiraz Cabernet
|
12,43
|
|
Syrah 2010
|
5,25
|
|
Dunkles
|
5,35
|
|
Gold
|
9,31
|
|
Hefetrübes Weizenbier
|
21,64
|
|
Nullkommajosef
|
4,36
|
|
Multivitamin juice Happy Day
|
2,15
|
|
Laphroaig Triplewood, Single islay malt
|
0,19
|
|
Whisky 12 y
|
0,07
|
|
Uigeadail
|
0,18
|
|
Amaretto
|
1,89
|
|
Buttermilk
|
8,74
|
|
Soy sauce
|
0,08
|
|
Hesperides vinegar
|
0,02
|
Please feel free to share your experience and what you have
found to be beneficial in managing an overflowing histamine bucket.
