What is histamine?
Histamine is the molecule responsible for those uncomfortable symptoms when you or a loved one are exposed to allergens including: food allergies, seasonal allergies, dust mite allergies, and/or allergies to our four-legged friends. Reactions involving histamine are inflammatory and often produce redness, rash, coughing, mucus, itching, and/or swelling. Although histamine is best known for its inflammatory immune responses, it plays a role with other physiological and pathophysiological functions of the body, including the relaxation of smooth muscles and blood vessels, the secretion of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and its action as a neurotransmitter) in the nervous system.
Histamine also acts as the key excitatory neurotransmitter responsible for the sleep-wake cycle.
Histamine imbalances can lead to all kinds of symptoms, including insomnia, emotional outbursts, and behavioral changes.
Why is histamine important for a healthy brain?
Histamine, important for a healthy brain, may be a contributing factor to sleep disorders that are often overlooked. Histamine is always present in our body at low levels and can become out of balance when we consume individually allergic foods and/or our individually allergic foods, eat a high histamine diet and/or a high histamine releaser diet (see below). below) but also when the body has insufficient levels of DAO (DAO is the enzyme responsible for the breakdown of histamine).
What happens when histamine builds up in the body?
In its role as a neurotransmitter, elevated histamine can contribute to symptoms such as low mood, trouble focusing and concentrating, fatigue, lack of sleep or insomnia, headaches, and trouble immune. Histamine, in its role as a neurotransmitter, acts to control the sleep-wake cycle. Elevated histamine can decrease GABA levels, which can lead to sleep cycle disturbances and increased anxiety. It can also cause imbalances in norepinephrine and epinephrine levels. These are two neurotransmitters released by the adrenals (our stress response organs) just like cortisol.
How does Origin26 measure histamine?
Origin26 assesses histamine excretion circulating in the central nervous system on the My Brain Balance test . The My Brain Balance test also assesses six other key neurotransmitters that impact brain health, including serotonin, dopamine, GABA, glutamate, norepinephrine, and epinephrine.
What are some foods that contribute to high histamine?
Histamine-Rich Foods
- Alcohol
- Aged cheeses
- Fermented foods: sauerkraut, kefir, kombucha, yogurt
- Foods containing vinegar: pickles, olives
- acidic foods
- Strawberry
- Nuts: walnuts, cashews and peanuts
Foods that release histamine
- Alcohol
- Bananas
- Chocolate
- Nut
- Tomatoes
DAO Blocking Foods
- Alcohol
How can I correct high histamine?
First, determine your histamine level. If elevated, your Origin26 clinician can recommend products to help treat elevated histamine. You might also consider exploring the role food plays in increasing your histamine excretion with food sensitivity testing. Include supplementation that naturally increases DAO levels such as omega-3 fatty acids, zinc, magnesium, and vitamin B12. Eat a diet rich in low-histamine and DAO-boosting foods such as: wild-caught salmon, pasture-raised butter, coconut, pasture-raised chicken and eggs, leafy green vegetables, grass-fed meat, herbs and fresh or dried spices.