Tag: YY

  • Carrageenan causes histamine induced inflammation

    Carrageenan causes histamine induced inflammation

    Soaked irish moss

    UPDATE: I have edited this post to reflect that carrageenan is an adulterated derivative of Irish Moss.

    “Carrageenan induced inflammation-protocol” is a phrase that keeps coming up in my histamine research. Why is this relevant? Carrageenan, a derivative of Irish Moss, is a common food additive. A quick Google search turns up thousands of studies where anti-inflammatory medicines and compounds are tested on “carrageenan induced-inflammation” or “edema”  [1]- it’s actually used to cause pain and inflammation in animals (poor things).

    CLICK HERE TO CREATE YOUR OWN PERSONALISED HEALING HISTAMINE PLAN. 

    In particular one study used it to induce inflammatory arthritis [2]. In a number of studies carrageenan has been shown to cause inflammation through its activity on the histamine H1 and H2 receptors [3] and may cause gastrointestinal damage [4]. I’ve also found a number mentioning mast cell degranulation which makes a lot of sense. These are all obviously terms those of us with histamine related disorders don’t want to hear associated with our food. Ouch. I used Irish Moss for years and this explains a lot…You’ll find carrageenan/irish moss in pretty much anything tasty on the supermarket shelf including:
    • Desserts, ice cream, cream, milkshakes, sweetened condensed milks, and sauces: gel to increase viscosity
    • Beer: clarifier to remove haze-causing proteins
    • Pâtés and processed meats (ham, e.g.): substitute for fat, increase water retention and increase volume, or improve sliceability
    • Toothpaste: stabilizer to prevent constituents separating
    • Fruit Gushers: ingredient in the encapsulated gel
    • Shampoo and cosmetic creams: thickeness
    • Biotechnology: gel to immobilize cells/enzymes
    • Pharmaceuticals: used as an inactive excipient in pills/tablets
    • Soy milk: used to thicken, in an attempt to emulate the consistency of whole milk
    • Diet sodas: to enhance texture and suspend flavours
    • Personal lubricants
    • Veggie dogs
    From Wikipedia. 
    I’d like to see more studies comparing irish moss in it’s original state vs extracted and manipulated carrageenan as a food additive, but for now it’s not something I’m willing to have in my diet. Agar agar offers similar results in desserts without any of the negative associated studies (yet?).

    It’s finally here! Man Food – a high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredient filled book geared towards guys, women who love to work out, yoga like they mean it, or just load up on healing nutrients. Features my personal shopping list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods. 

    The Anti-cookbook and all liquid Anti-Detox Book, don’t treat any conditions, but feature a plethora of the high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredients that have been instrumental in helping me feed myself on a limited diet. The Anti-cookbook features a six page list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods and comes in regular and Paleo. 

    The Low Oxalate Cookbook features antihistamine and anti-inflammatory rich recipes. 

    Don’t miss the Low Histamine Beauty Survival Guide for non-toxic beauty tips, the skinny on histamine releasing (mast cell degranulating) beauty ingredients, antihistamine and anti-inflammatory beauty alternatives and the top brands natural brands I’ve found.

    Take a peek at my other low histamine and antihistamine cookbooks for more high nutrient recipes

    ——– REFERENCES———

    [1] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21639869

    [2] http://www.tufts.edu/~ttheoh01/cam-theoharides.pdf

    [3] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6852108

    [4] http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/QAA401181/Is-Carrageenan-Safe.html

  • Histamine’s role in chronic bladder inflammation (or Interstitial Cystitis)

    Histamine’s role in chronic bladder inflammation (or Interstitial Cystitis)

    Histamine and mast cell activation in interstitial cystitis

    UPDATE 2016:

    Since this post I have found that oxalic acid found in plants is quite possibly far more of an issue than histamine/mast cells in my bladder issue. Moderating oxalate combined with my histamine balanced diet has completely cleared up my life long bladder pain and frequency. Read the post here. You can buy the low oxalate cookbook here. 

    I’m busy compiling a doctor “wish-list” for exploring my histamine-related disorder.  So far, at the very top of it is Dr. Theoharides of Tufts University in Boston. I’ve been taking his high dose quercetin supplement, Neuroprotek for just over a week now and it seems to be making a big difference in my histamine intolerance/histaminosis/mast cell activation symptoms. While perusing the swathes of research (that he has conducted) on his site – one on Interstitial Cystitis caught my attention. Having been misdiagnosed with UTI, despite negative culture, I once again wondered why none of my doctors were aware of this research.

    Here’s an excerpt from a talk with doctor Theoharides. You can read the full text here.

    Moderator: Jill Osborne, M.A. President & Founder
    Interstitial Cystitis Network, Santa Rosa, CA USA
    http://www.ic-network.com 

    REDUCING INFLAMMATION AND RESTORING BLADDER MUCUS
    The Role of Quercetin, Glucosamine & Chondroitin


    “In either case, we believe that a central cell for the initiation of the inflammation, whether it’s from the bladder in, or the inside is the MAST CELL. Let’s give an example of what happens if there is an insult from the bladder.  Let’s call it… X…. will damage the GAG layer and get to the urothelial cells. The urothelial cells are not supposed to deal with any triggers. Once they feel the trigger, they send the message on to the SUBMUCOSA, the layer right behind the urothelial cell and very rich in nerves and mast cells.

    In the submucosa, mast cells will immediately be activated and will release three sets of molecules that are very important in inflammation:

     1 – Histamine will make the blood vessels leaky. This will allow circulating white blood cells to come out of the vessel and into the tissue to take care of the offending molecule. This process makes the blood vessels swell up and create openings where the white blood cells can come out and enter the bladder to take care of the trigger. When you see inside the bladder with a cystoscope in many IC patients, the urologists see what are described as glomerulations, which are microhemorrhages. In other words, the dilation of the blood vessels (and through the blood vessels) both white cells and blood emerge thus creating the petechial hemorrhages that your doctor may see.

    2 – Cytokines that make the wall of the blood vessels product “docking” areas (called vascular adhesion molecules) to which the circulating white blood cells attach and exit.

    3 – Chemoattractants that draw circulating white blood cells to bladder tissues.”

    Have you been diagnosed with IC or recurrent UTI and now suspect it could in fact be related to your histamine issues?

    It’s finally here! Man Food – a high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredient filled book geared towards guys, women who love to work out, yoga like they mean it, or just load up on healing nutrients. Features my personal shopping list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods. 

    The Anti-cookbook and all liquid Anti-Detox Book, don’t treat any conditions, but feature a plethora of the high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredients that have been instrumental in helping me feed myself on a limited diet. The Anti-cookbook features a six page list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods and comes in regular and Paleo. 

    The Low Oxalate Cookbook features antihistamine and anti-inflammatory rich recipes. 

    Don’t miss the Low Histamine Beauty Survival Guide for non-toxic beauty tips, the skinny on histamine releasing (mast cell degranulating) beauty ingredients, antihistamine and anti-inflammatory beauty alternatives and the top brands natural brands I’ve found.

    Take a peek at my other low histamine and antihistamine cookbooks for more high nutrient recipes

  • Histamine induced uterine contractions a danger in pregnancy.

    Histamine & pregnancy
    Elevated histamine levels can affect pregnancy

  • Irresistible to the opposite sex? Histamine could be why!

    Estrogen causes histamine release

    Estrogen can cause major histamine release in the body. Now why would you want that? Because histamine makes you um, randy, and your biological imperative is to procreate. We shouldn’t really complain though,estrogen makes us more attractive to the opposite sex…but back to my point.

    Studies on female rats show that estrogen supplementation, or natural fluctuations in cycle near ovulation, cause libido boosting histamine release. Didn’t know that histamine affects your sex drive? You’re welcome! Please explain to your significant other that spiking your meals with cashews isn’t necessary thank you very much. It’s one of the many perks/crosses to bear with our histaminosis/histamine intolerance diagnosis.

    Estrogen is important in female precopulatory behaviors in 3 m ways: 1) estrogen increases a female’s willingness to approach a male to induce solicitatious behaviors, 2) estrogen can enhance the “attractivity” of the female: estrogen priming can induce the production of stimuli that make her more attractive to the male (odors or pheromones, vocalizations), and 3) estrogen ‘primes’ for progesterone.

    So…

    (more…)
  • Gluten/Milk/Sugar Free (delicious) Low Histamine Cupcakes!

    Gluten/Milk/Sugar Free (delicious) Low Histamine Cupcakes!

    Gluten/Milk/Sugar Free Low Histamine Cupcakes with Frosting

    Check out these gluten/milk/sugar free and low histamine cupcakes. There’s no unhealthy fats, preservatives, flavours, really absolutely nothing but pure, nutritious, tasty ingredients. I’m definitely an excitable gal, but these took a few tries to get right, so I’m celebrating. I’m not a huge fan of stevia/yacon as sweeteners so I use agave. You could easily substitute it for them though.

    I’m very new to gluten free baking, but I’m really loving it.

    Phew. Ok, on to the next recipe. The histamine intolerance/histaminosis/mastocytosis/mcad/mcas friendly dessert book with this recipe will be out by the end of the week. The recipes are higher histamine than my other book (The Diamine Oxidase Support Recipe Book), i.e. many recipes contain some agave/honey but are still far lower histamine than anything thing you’ll find commercially or in most cases even online recipe-wise.

    Sign up to my mailing list for a 10% discount and for bi-monthly free recipes.

  • I have histamine intolerance, are my thyroid meds making me sick?

    I have histamine intolerance, are my thyroid meds making me sick?

    THE LOW HISTAMINE CHEF MAILBAG

    I found this particular email very interesting given that I’ve been misdiagnosed with thyroid issues twice in my life before being finally diagnosed with a histamine related disorder (high histamine/histamine intolerance/histaminosis). I refused meds the first time but gave in on the second. What a weird, crazy ride Levothyroxine sent me on. We’re talking severe mania here. Awake for days on end, racing thoughts, very productive behaviour till the crash. And boy was it spectacular!

    Medicine has sent me on so many Alice in Wonderland trips that I didn’t necessarily think there was a link when I began my investigations, but a little research turned up that not only do thyroid meds (synthetic thyroxine) raise histamine levels, they also lower diamine oxidase and monoamine oxidase, the enzymes responsible for metabolising histamine and tyramine (respectively).

    Circulating levels of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5HT), histamine, monoamine oxidase (MAO), histaminase, tri-iodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) were studied in L-thyroxine and carbimazole treated rats. Increased concentrations of 5-HT, histamine, glutamate, T3 and T4 were recorded in L-thyroxine-treated rats while plasma gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), MAO and histaminase levels were significantly decreased. The findings suggest that alterations in the metabolism of thyroid hormones may have a link with the altered metabolism of biogenic amines. Read the full study here.

    And another that mentions cardiac involvement:

    Thyroxine-induced supersensitivity to histamine and norepinephrine activation of cardiac phosphorylasea. The results indicate that thyroid hormone can enhance both histamine and norepinephrine-induced activation of cardiac phosphorylasea. Possible mechanisms of this interaction are discussed. Read the full study here.

    Thyroxin induced supersensitivity. Yes, that’s one way of referring to the hell that I went through on these meds. The next endocrinologist I consulted with called it “a sub clinical diagnosis” that should never have been tampered with. He did not in any way attribute my anxiety/mania symptoms to it. I asked. Sheesh. I’ve seen a lot of silly docs over the years. This might be something to keep in mind if you’ve been diagnosed with a histamine related disorder.

    Please consult your doc before even thinking about messing with your meds!

  • Does having histamine intolerance mean you shouldn’t take probiotics?

    Does having histamine intolerance mean you shouldn’t take probiotics?

    Fermented foods are so off the menu for me histamine-wise that I don’t recognise them as food anymore. My last attempt, store bought coconut yoghurt (lactose free), bought me a whole lotta face-down pillow time as it worked it’s magic on my digestive tract.

    Ok, enough of the dirty talk.

    So what’s a histamine-challened gal to do? I ♥ my beneficial bacteria big time but am in no way willing to risk that kind of down time again. Others might not be so sensitive, it’s one of the, um, perks, of not taking any anti-histamine/allergy meds.

    It’s frustrating because beneficial bacteria does help lower histamine! But this study showed that the strains with the antihistaminic action are only found in human infant bowels. Not something I’d like for lunch really.

    So I examined the alternatives…a little research on my day’s menu not only turned up that buckwheat may be an anti-allergenic food for some due to its rutin bioflavonoid content, more so the leaves and the dark flour than noodles [1], that it inhibits cancer spread (read more here), but also that it’s a pre-biotic.

    UPDATED POST:

    Unfortunately with two confirmed cases of buckwheat anaphylaxis and a rising number in other European countries as well as the “home” of buckwheat, Japan, where it’s actually becoming a serious problem [2], it seems that chronic exposure to buckwheat may pose a risk to those pre-disposed to allergies. I have in recent years cut back my buckwheat because of its extremely high oxalic acid content. You can read all about oxalates here. 

    I’m leaving all the information here for you and your doctor to decide together. Read on for alternative prebiotic foods…

    Click here to learn how to create your own histamine balanced diet and healing plan. 

    Sorry, couldn’t resist sticking in a Little Rascal’s Picture of “Buckwheat”!

    This buckwheat…

    shows particular increases in Lactobacillus plantarum, Bifidobacterium spp and Bifidobacterium lactis. 

    A prebiotic was first defined as (1) “a nondigestible food ingredient that beneficially affects the host by selectively stimulating the growth and/or activity of one or a limited number of bacteria in the colon, and thus improves host health.” Read the full study here.

    They then touch on my favourite topic, moderation with supplements, when the stress that quantity is not predictive of success…

    The daily dose of the prebiotic is not a determinant of the prebiotic effect… The major factor that quantitatively controls the prebiotic effect is the number of bifidobacteria per gram of feces the volunteers have before supplementation of the diet with the prebiotic begins.The “dose argument” (often used for marketing some prebiotics) is thus not supported by the scientific data; it is misleading for the consumer.”

    Here’s a chart of the top prebiotic foods – according to the US Dept of Agriculture.

    (more…)
  • Histamine in Foods (list)

    Histamine in Foods (list)

    This week I had the pleasure of meeting Barcelona-based nutritionist Adriana Duelo. She has kindly allowed me to re-blog an article that was originally part of her nutritional thesis. Adriana’s research is regularly submitted to the prestigious SPANISH SOCIETY OF DAO DEFICIENCY  (of which she is also a member). Something that quickly caught my eye on Adriana’s website was a breakdown of histamine content in some popular foods. The charts and the text below were translated from the spanish on her site (using Google Translate). Adriana herself speaks perfect English and will be sharing a few more interesting articles for release through my site in the coming weeks.

    Histamine levels in popular foods
    Histamine levels in popular foods

    Were you as surprised as I by some of these results? I was excited to see chocolate scoring so low – but we already know that cacao is more of a histamine liberator rather than being high in it. Alcohol, though not too high histamine, has the very unfortunate effect of blocking DAO (diamine oxidase) production. I don’t feel that bad when I drink (as long as I stick to tequila, rum or gin), but feel horrible for days afterwards when things I usually tolerate suddenly start bothering me.

    Histamine levels in popular foods
    Histamine levels in popular foods

    Milk certainly shocked me, though it’s not relevant to me as I don’t indulge in dairy. My home made (raw) chocolate bars are pure cacao and almond butter. Before you rush out and indulge in all the things you’ve thought were off the menu – please read the text below from Adriana’s site where she points out that not only is there some dispute about the histamine content of foods, but also at what concentration (mg per kilo) to avoid them.

    Histamine levels in popular foods
    Histamine levels in popular foods

    I personally don’t think people should be too strict. I’m only as strict as I have to be and most of the time chemicals bother me more than foods. I understand that histamine is necessary for almost all bodily functions, but that doesn’t give me permission to pig out on pizza and sausage. I’m much more likely to be found adding tomatoes to my salads and pineapple to a smoothie.

    Histamine levels in popular foods
    Histamine levels in popular foods

    Continued from Adriana Duelo’s site….

    FOODS RICH IN HISTAMINE

    The lack of enzymatic activity of Diamino oxidase (DAO) can cause different symptoms in our body that is manifested by several signs, as shown in an article published last month in this blog: ” Deficit of enzyme DAO . “

    First, is diagnosed when there is a lack of DAO activity with a blood test, the nutritionist can rate portal as a diet low in histamine and other amines . (These other amines also be taken into account, but I’ll leave for another article).

    This pattern is essential to prevent the onset of symptoms (one of the main, the migraine ), so you need to degrade histamine enzyme DAO, and but we have enough accumulated histamine can produce symptoms mentioned.

    From this diet, while nutritionist decide if, moreover, the supplies necessary for a DAO enzyme dietary supplement to help absorb the low histamine foods that we ingest.

    There is disagreement over the criteria to be followed for the consideration of whether or not a food rich in histamine. Some authors suggest avoiding those foods from the diet that have concentrations above 20 mg / kg, while others are much more demanding and consider foods with low amounts of histamine which contain less than 1 mg / kg. ‘ What is clear is that the dose symptomatological is much lower in patients with CAD deficit in sporadic histamine poisoning: 15-20mg and 150mg respectively. This demonstrates clearly important in a diet low in rate portal histamine deficit in patients with CAD.

    ADRIANA DUELO – Nutritionist.  

  • Fight histamine-induced inflammation with yoga!

    Fight histamine-induced inflammation with yoga!

    Adding anti-inflammatory foods to your fight against histamine-induced inflammation? Why stop at food? Check out this Huffington Post article on yoga’s role in reducing inflammation.

    The researchers found that the caregivers who participated in the yoga practice experienced a change in the response of 68 genes, leading to the decrease in inflammation. Inflammation has been linked with health problems like heart disease, depression, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes, Scientific American reported. Read the Huffington Post article here.

    Here’s another study that I posted a while back:

    Importantly, even though novices and experts did not differ on key dimensions, including age, abdominal adiposity, and cardiorespiratory fitness, novices’ serum interleukin (IL)-6 levels were 41% higher than those of experts across sessions, and the odds of a novice having detectable C-reactive protein (CRP) were 4.75 times as high as that of an expert. Differences in stress responses between experts and novices provided one plausible mechanism for their divergent serum IL-6 data; experts produced less lipopolysaccharide-stimulated IL-6 in response to the stressor than novices, and IL-6 promotes CRP production. The ability to minimize inflammatory responses to stressful encounters influences the burden that stressors place on an individual. If yoga dampens or limits stress-related changes, then regular practice could have substantial health benefits. Read the full study here.

    How are you fighting histamine/mastocytosis/MCAD/MCAS induced inflammation?

  • Braised Chicory Fennel Salad (anti-inflammatory)

    Braised Chicory Fennel Salad (anti-inflammatory)

    braised anti-inflammatory & anti-histamine chicory fennel salad
    braised anti-inflammatory & anti-histamine chicory fennel salad

    Today’s lunch encompassed my favourite mealtime elements: this warm salad is anti-inflammatory, anti-histamine and prebiotic. I’m not devoting as much time as I should to getting the “perfect” shot of my off the cuff rummages through the fridge that are usually the result of either having forgot to go food shopping, or my uber healthy man getting to the veggies before I do! So I hope you’ll bear with me as I work out the kinks in my lunch-time photo shoots.

    So here’s the salad breakdown: watercress has been show to have potent anti-histaminic activity, red chicory is both anti-histaminic and a prebiotic, which could help those of use with histamine intolerance or mastocytosis replenish our friendly bacteria supply without raising our histamine levels. Fennel is both a antihistamine and anti-inflammatory. This recipe is also high in Vitamin K which is our key ally in the fight against inflammation.

    Click here to create your own customised healing plan and histamine balanced diet. 

    The Recipe:

    BRAISED RED CHICORY & FENNEL SALAD W/WATERCRESS

    180 calories (less if you omit the oil)

    Serves 1

    10 mins prep

    INGREDIENTS:

    2 red chicory, cut into quarters

    2 fennel bulbs, halved and sliced

    1/2 cup watercress

    1-2 cloves garlic

    argan/almond oil (or your choice – olive works wonderfully)

    2 tbsp almonds, lightly crushed

    lemon (or lemon thyme), squeeze

    PREP:

    In a pan, heat a little argan oil. Sauté the garlic till fragrant, add in the chicory and fennel.

    Squeeze in a little lemon (or some lemon thyme leaves).

    If you have time…

    Add in enough home made stock to halfway cover the food.

    Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and let the vegetables finish cooking until tender. I like my veggies a little crunchy, but everyone is different. Once they’re good to go, remove the lid and raise the heat to high to boil away the rest of the liquid. Make sure to toss the veggies quite a bit, till you have a bit of a sauce. Garnish with thyme, watercress and almonds.

    You can also serve this salad with warm goat’s cheese.

    Non-low histamine modification: 

    Instead of almonds, warm up 1/2 cup of walnuts under the grill.

    Add their choice of cheese.

    Serve with the veggies.

    It’s finally here! Man Food – a high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredient filled book geared towards guys, women who love to work out, yoga like they mean it, or just load up on healing nutrients. Features my personal shopping list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods. 

    The Anti-cookbook and all liquid Anti-Detox Book, don’t treat any conditions, but feature a plethora of the high nutrient antihistamine and anti-inflammatory ingredients that have been instrumental in helping me feed myself on a limited diet. The Anti-cookbook features a six page list of antihistamine and anti-inflammatory foods and comes in regular and Paleo. 

    The Low Oxalate Cookbook features antihistamine and anti-inflammatory rich recipes. 

    Don’t miss the Low Histamine Beauty Survival Guide for non-toxic beauty tips, the skinny on histamine releasing (mast cell degranulating) beauty ingredients, antihistamine and anti-inflammatory beauty alternatives and the top brands natural brands I’ve found.

    Take a peek at my other low histamine and antihistamine cookbooks for more high nutrient recipes.

    ———REFERENCES——–

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3151653/

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10746164

    http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1043661899904747

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15351109

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3151653/

     

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