Sensitivity to histamine-rich foods is a serious disorder that affects many people (1 in every 100 per most estimates) and requires urgent care. However, despite how serious it can be, histamine Intolerance can be easily and effectively managed through natural ways like many other ailments.
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What Is Histamine Intolerance?
Histamine is a chemical substance (an amino acid to be specific) that is present in a number of foods and is also produced naturally in our body. While not inherently harmful, too much of it in the body can lead to adverse health effects in a condition known as histamine intolerance.
Common indicators of histamine intolerance include headache, irritation of the skin, flu-like symptoms, and in serious cases, fluctuations in blood pressure, sleep-related and behavioral disorders. In any case, a proper diagnosis is necessary before seeking treatment.
While some people believe it’s due to an allergic reaction, this condition actually arises when the level of histamine in our body rises above a certain threshold. That usually happens when histamine is overproduced and not properly degraded by our body.
3 Surefire Ways To Improve Your Health
While it’s certainly a serious issue, histamine intolerance can be easily managed through alternative medicine. There are a number of recommendations through which your practitioner can guide you towards better health.
1. Go With Your Gut
Normally, your body controls levels of histamine through gut flora i.e., the millions of bacteria that exist naturally in your stomach. Basically, there has to be a balance between bacteria that either help produces or degrade histamine.
If there is an imbalance in your gut flora where histamine-degrading microbes start to disappear, you are more likely to develop symptoms of intolerance due to subsequently heightened levels of histamine. This is known as dysbiosis.
If you have been diagnosed with histamine intolerance, your practitioner might recommend steps to help restore the balance in your gut bacteria. This might include avoiding certain foods, taking supplements, or making lifestyle changes to prevent the stress-induced loss of gut flora.
2. Adjust Your Diet
Dietary histamine is a common cause of intolerance since it’s found naturally in a wide range of food groups like dairy, seafood, many fruits and vegetables, spices, and fermented products, among others. Some food items like citrus fruits don’t actually contain histamine but can speed up its production in our body when consumed.
While limiting the amount of these foods might be helpful, it’s not feasible to abstain from this many food groups. Instead, you can balance things out by also increasing your intakes of antihistamine foods, like garlic, apples, and herbs like mint, thyme, and basil.
Another way is to eat fresh food and limit leftovers, as the histamine content in most foods increases with time.
3. Sleep Well And Stay Relaxed
Studies often show that symptoms of disorders like histamine intolerance can be worsened due to stress. Soothing practices like meditation and improving your sleep don’t just help with inflammation and other symptoms but give you the mental and physical clarity to make recovery easier.
Why Choose Natural Treatment Over Medication?
The drugs prescribed to combat histamine intolerance, known as antihistamines, work by blocking the sites in our body that the immune system uses to recognize and employ histamine.
While it has some benefits, they are usually temporary. Plus, prolonged use of these drugs can fool our immune system into producing more histamine, and some are even harmful to histamine-reducing gut bacteria. This makes the use of these drugs risky for most patients.
Conclusion
Increased sensitivity towards histamine is a common medical condition and those suffering from its symptoms should take the necessary tests as soon as possible. However, medical intervention is not suitable for everyone and, as we’ve learned, can be counterproductive.
Instead, natural methods like changes in dietary lifestyle as prescribed by a licensed and qualified practitioner or naturopath are a low-risk, high reward alternative for effectively managing histamine intolerance and other disorders.