Histamine

Histamine is a substance produced in our body from amino acids. It is important in many processes. For instance, it protects against harmful substances and invaders, regulates body temperature and stimulates blood circulation and breathing. Histamine can also be found in food. Our bodies can have difficulty absorbing large amounts of histamine, causing symptoms such as: itching, redness, irritation of the skin, nose, throat and lungs. Individual tolerance to this substance varies.

Histamine is stored in white blood cells in places in the body that are in contact with the lungs and gastrointestinal canal. It is broken down in our bodies by 2 enzymes: diamine oxidase (DAO) and histamine-N-methyltransferase (HNMT). Sometimes, there may be too few enzymes present or the enzymes cannot break down the substances sufficiently. As a result, histamine will accumulate in our body and symptoms may arise.

Histaminosis means that there is too much histamine in the body, regardless of its cause.

In histamine intolerance, there is an excess of histamine because the enzymes that take care of its breakdown are not working adequately or are present.

sSymptoms can also arise from excessive production in our body, excessive intake of histamine-rich food or food that release histamine, food poisoning or impaired breakdown of histamine that is not due to the enzymes. In this case, we speak of histamine hypersensitivity.

To prevent excess histamine in the body, avoiding certain foods may be recommended.