Okay, one moment please! Histamine intolerance, healthy gut flora, bacteria, and strengthening it with suitable probiotics and prebiotics - what? You're looking for clarification here and wondering why you get an intolerance reaction after a glass of red wine and a piece of cheese? Don't worry! We have gathered all the important information for you on how to optimally strengthen your gut flora if you have histamine intolerance. Stay tuned!
What exactly is histamine?
Histamine is a naturally occurring substance in our body, but it can also be ingested through our diet. It fulfills many important functions, such as regulating our sleep-wake rhythm, serving as a kind of messenger substance for the brain, or ensuring that increased stomach acid is produced when needed. However, an excess of histamine can cause histamine intolerance.
What exactly is histamine intolerance?
With histamine intolerance, the body has an excess of histamine, which can lead to impaired breakdown and thus to intolerance reactions. Unlike food intolerances, histamine intolerance is a hitherto rather unexplained medical condition. Histamine intolerance (who would have thought otherwise) usually begins in the gut. The function of the histamine-degrading enzyme diamine oxidase (DAO) is impaired. As a result, the histamine cannot be broken down properly by the missing enzyme and enters various areas of our body through our bloodstream, which can lead to characteristic symptoms such as problems with the intestines and skin, headaches, and respiratory problems. However, the symptoms can manifest in very different ways.
What contains histamine?
Histamine-rich foods, such as yeast, strong cheese, minced meat, or green tea, contain histamine. Fermented products often contain a lot of histamine as well. In addition, there are also so-called histamine liberators, whose consumption stimulates the release of the body's own histamine. These include tomatoes, nuts, coffee, alcohol, flavor enhancers, and processed foods.
The consumption of histamine-rich foods is the most common cause of symptoms of histamine intolerance.
What is the gut lacking in histamine intolerance?
As we have already learned, in most cases of histamine intolerance, the enzyme DAO is missing. And this enzyme can only break down histamine in our gut. Since people with histamine intolerance have an altered gut flora, it can be advisable to strengthen the gut flora with probiotics and prebiotics at this point.
What role do probiotics play in histamine intolerance?
Probiotics are living microorganisms that can support our gut flora and restore its balance. They can improve our gut microbiome, reduce inflammation, and help improve the tolerance of certain foods that contain histamine, among other things. However, the bacteria contained in the probiotic play an important role. There are neutral strains, such as Lactobacillus salivarius or Bifidobacterium bifidum, histamine-degrading strains, such as Lacobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidibacterium infantis and Bifidobacterium longum. But also histamine-producing strains! Therefore, inform yourself precisely about the respective bacterial strains of the probiotic before taking it or discuss the respective intake with your doctor.
Our med Darmbasis is a natural food supplement with gut bacterial cultures for children and adults and gently supports the development of gut flora. It contains the histamine-degrading strains Lacobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidibacterium infantis, Bifidobacterium longum.
We hope we have been able to clarify all your questions on this topic and wish you all the best.
U N S E R E E X P E R T I N Dr. med Michaela Hagemann I boep-founder, doctor &
3-time mom
Literature:
Schnedl, W. J., & Enko, D. (2021). Histamine intolerance originates in the gut. Nutrients, 13(4), 1262. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13041262
